SunPower Corp will design, build and operate the facility. Subject to receipt of applicable permits, SunPower plans to begin construction this year and complete the solar farm within five months. It will be located on land leased from the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands at Roosevelt Avenue and Boxer Road.
The SunPower agreement represents the first utility-scale solar project on Oahu approved by the PUC. The contract is the outcome of Hawaiian Electric’s request for proposals for renewable energy projects for Oahu issued under the PUC’s competitive bidding framework in 2008.
The price is not linked to the cost of fossil fuel which protects electric customers from the volatility of the price of oil. The cost per kilowatt hour will start under 20 cents and will initially escalate at a fixed rate before a price reduction during the second half of the contract.
