Photo credit score: AES
The AES Corp. has chosen BayWa r.e. to assemble the Waikoloa Solar + Storage Project, an built-in solar photovoltaic and battery energy storage system owned and operated by AES on Hawaiʻi Island.
BayWa r.e. Power Solutions will construct the 30 MW AC/43 MW DC solar and 30 MW/120 MWh storage undertaking on roughly 300 acres of leased land close to Waikoloa Village within the South Kohala district of the island.
The power generated and saved by the Waikoloa Solar + Storage Project shall be purchased by native utility Hawaiian Electric Co. Inc. (HECO) below the phrases of a cost-competitive 25-year power buy settlement (PPA). On completion, the undertaking will produce sufficient electrical energy to power 13,600 households, contributing greater than 7% of Hawaiʻi Island’s annual energy wants and leading to a complete averted gas consumption of greater than 511,000 barrels of oil over its 25-year lifetime.
Permits have been secured and web site preparation and building on the undertaking have begun, with substantial completion anticipated within the fourth quarter of 2022. Over the course of the undertaking, 200 jobs shall be created, and the undertaking is predicted to generate a complete financial output of an estimated $47 million towards Hawaiʻi’s financial system.
The solar portion of the undertaking will characteristic single-axis trackers outfitted with bifacial PV modules. The related lithium-ion battery system will safely retailer energy in periods of low buyer demand to be used at peak demand intervals, such because the early morning or night hours. The batteries can even present grid and ancillary companies and allow the grid to accommodate extra renewable sources whereas displacing typical technology.
“We have completed several successful solar and storage projects in Hawai’i,” says Todd Lindstrom, COO at BayWa r.e. Power Solutions LLC. “We’re excited to support Hawaiʻi’s renewable energy leadership in the U.S. and about the growing relationships we have with the local community. We look forward to bringing more renewable energy solutions to the island as we grow.”
