Hawaii to run entirely on renewable energy by 2045

Hawaii is planning to be the first US state to be run entirely on renewable energy, a process that is scheduled to be completed by 2045.  

Hawaii has no fossil fuel resources, and presently imports 93% of all its energy, giving it the most expensive electricity prices in the US. The plan is to increase the level of renewable energy in the mix to 30% by 2020, 40% by 2030, 70% by 2040 and 100% by 2045. 

A number of sources of energy will be exploited, including hydroelectric and geothermal energy, biomass and ocean wave and tidal action. Some of the energy will be used to charge hydrogen fuel cells. 

The Japanese engineer Hitachi has been working on a demonstration project on Maui Island in collaboration with Mizuho Bank and the Japanese research body the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation. 

The goal of this project will be to demonstrate how smart grid technologies will enable the shift to renewables on the production side, and on the consumption side to electric vehicles. 

A bill to extend Hawaii’s Clean Energy Initiative was passed last week and David Ige, the governor of the island, has until the end of June to approve it. 

A spokesperson from Hawaii state energy office said: "This is a significant step in our effort towards reducing Hawaii’s dependence on expensive imported oil and putting the state on the path toward greater energy, environmental and economic security." 

Jodi Leong, a representative from the Hawaii governor’s office, said: "We don’t probably have the technology today to do everything. We do have some time to do this." 

In the first three months of this year Costa Rica was entirely run on renewable energy and Iceland and Denmark are planning to follow suit. 

Image: Big Beach, Maui, Hawaii (Wikimedia Commons)