Hawaiian Electric and developer Innergex Renewable Energy have terminated an agreement for a planned grid-scale solar and battery storage project in South Maui hit with lengthy delays resulting from the developer?s legal challenges and pandemic-related cost and supply-chain issues. The project, Paeahu Solar, was first proposed in 2018 and was a critical part of Hawaiian Electric?s plan to meet Maui?s energy needs with local, renewable resources at significantly lower cost than using imported fossil fuels to generate power. Of five solar and energy storage projects approved by the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for Maui over the past five years, only one is being built, the AES Corp.?s 60-megawatt Kuihelani project.

Four power purchase agreements, including the one for Paeahu Solar, have been terminated. The project?s planned 15-megawatt solar array and 60-megawatt-hour storage system on a 200-acre parcel leased from Ulupalakua Ranch would have powered about 6,900 homes per year with clean energy. By 2028, Hawaiian Electric must retire its Kahului Power Plant to meet environmental regulations.

The unavailability of replacement parts for units at the Maalaea Power Plant has also created uncertainty about its future past 2030.