About 22.5 percent of Kauai Island Utility Cooperative's net electricity sales during the 2014 calendar year were supplied by renewable energy resources and energy savings, according to a report supplied to Hawaii regulators. KIUC said that of the 22.5 percent total, it gets 13.6 percent of its power from using renewable sources, with the balance being from efficiency measures.
That 22.5 percent exceeds its portfolio standard in 2013 by 3.5 percent mainly because of rooftop and utility-scale solar projects, Michael Yamane, chief of operations for KIUC, said in letter filed on Friday with the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission. In addition to meeting this requirement, the utility also has met the requirement that at least 50 percent of its portfolio standard be met by electrical energy generated using renewable energy as the source.
With current renewable energy sources and the future activities, including hydroelectric, pumped storage, utility-scale solar and biomass projects, KIUC noted that it is on target to exceed the 2015 portfolio standard requirement of 15 percent.
In an effort to reduce its power cost, decrease it use of imported fossil fuels and increase the amount of energy generated from Kaua`i’s own resources, KIUC has launched a strategic initiative to generate 50 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2023.