Hawaii

pv magazine USA spotlights news of the past week including market trends, project updates, policy changes and more.

pv magazine USA spotlights news of the past week including market trends, project updates, policy changes and more.

Also on the rise: Hawaii’s largest solar-plus-storage facility now operational. Swift Solar closes $27 million in funding, plans perovskite solar factory. And more.

The 60 MW Kūihelani solar-plus-storage facility will generate enough electricity for 27,000 homes, with a 240 MWh battery energy storage system.

After passing a new solar-battery export program that has sparked the ire of rooftop solar advocates, legislators have submitted a bill that would increase payment for battery-tied exported solar production.

Diesel generators have been the workhorse of disaster relief for decades but as the frequency of extreme weather events rises, so do calls to decarbonize the emergency response. Sustainability may not be the only benefit to using solar in a crisis, as pv magazine discovers.

Also on the rise: Hawaiian utility to balance grid with 565 MWh battery, First Solar opens manufacturing plant in India, and more.

Curtailment, or deliberate reduction in output, will be reduced in Hawaii by a large grid-scale energy storage project comprised of Tesla Megapacks.

Hawaii-based Wavr LLC is developing a wave energy converter that is designed to be scaled up and integrated with other renewable energy technologies. The startup plans to sell a version integrating five 40 W solar panels at $2,300.

Solar represents 17.25% of the island state’s power mix. At the end of 2022, Hawaiian Electric had achieved 32% of its renewable procurement standard goal of becoming fully renewable powered by 2045.