Key Performance Metrics

Other Resources and Emerging Technologies

Energy Storage System in Hawi, Big Island

Altairnano lithium-titanate battery energy storage system (“BESS”), Hawi wind farm, North Kohala, Big Island of Hawaii

Other Resources and Emerging Technologies Performance Metrics

Other resources and emerging technologies such as demand response ("DR") and energy storage will play integral roles in the grid of the future, while more renewable energy generation is integrated into the grid and the role of fossil fuels is expected to diminish. A balanced portfolio of firm, intermittent, utility scale and distributed generation and storage resources will mitigate system risks related to reliability and resiliency, and provide solutions for customers. Hawaiian Electric will continue to ensure a high level of system reliability under the new, higher-renewable regime, using as ancillary services¹ both generation units and grid service resources, such as energy storage technologies and DR. The following reports Hawaiian Electric's DR and energy storage metrics.

¹ Ancillary services are those services other than pure energy delivery, which are necessary to maintain reliable operation of the power system. The design and operation of the power system must ensure sufficient resources are available to provide necessary ancillary services for adequate reliability. Historically, generating assets provided ancillary services. Today, new types of resources can also be considered for ancillary services, including DR and storage.

Demand Response

Demand Response (“DR”) refers to actions by customers that change their consumption (demand) of electric power in response to price signals, incentives, or directions from grid operators. As Hawaii continues to increase its reliance on variable renewable energy, it will be harder for the Company's System Operators to maintain the stability of the state's electricity grids. DR programs give grid operators more flexibility when balancing supply and demand. DR may contribute to meeting grid service requirements,² such as contributing to capacity or ancillary services such as, regulating reserve, contingency reserve, and non-spinning reserve.

In July 2014, in accordance with Hawaii Public Utilities Commission ("PUC") policy guidelines and directives (Order No. 32054), Hawaiian Electric submitted an Integrated Demand Response Portfolio Plan ("IDRPP"), proposing to implement a portfolio of DR programs that appeals to a wide variety of residential and commercial customers, reduces energy supply costs, increases the effective use of renewable energy, increases system reliability, and enhances customer choice. The resulting increased operational flexibility will support the integration of additional renewable resources and address a changing profile of energy demand created by the growth in distributed resources. Hawaiian Electric proposed a company-wide implementation, transitioning from existing programs to a new DR portfolio.

In February 2017, Hawaiian Electric filed an application with the PUC to seek approval of the underlying proposed tariff structure for the grid services that will serve as the basis for the portfolio of DR programs. In January 2018, the Public Utilities Commission approved the DR portfolio to proceed. The Company has executed an aggregator contract (Grid Service Purchase Agreement (“GSPA”)) in 1st quarter of 2019. On August 9, 2019, the Commission issued Order 36467 approving the aggregator contract in the first round of GSPA Contracts (“GSPA 1”). Under GSPA 1, Hawaiian Electric completed system integration with the aggregator in 1st quarter of 2020. Due to COVID-19, this aggregator’s enrollment process continues to be delayed and the aggregator has notified the Company of Force Majeure under the GSPA. The Company is working with the aggregator to re-baseline the enrollment schedule and received an updated schedule in October 2021 that expects to catch up the aggregator’s enrollment by the end of 2022.

On December 31, 2020, the Commission issued Order No. 37523 approving two more aggregator contracts (“GSPA 2”). One of the aggregators under GSPA 2 completed system integration in December 2021 and will begin enrolling participants in January 2022. The other aggregator has encountered supply chain issues related to COVID-19 pandemic and has declared Force Majeure under GSPA 2. The Company anticipates a system integration by March 31, 2022 for this aggregator; however COVID-19 related issues are expected continue to delay enrollment.

On March 16, 2022, the Company submitted a request to the Commission to approve and recovery the costs of a GSPA (“GSPA 3”) resulting from RFP #103121-01 seeking 60 MWs of Grid Services on Oahu.

The following DR metrics report Hawaiian Electric’s total amount of capacity, in mega-watts (“MW”) (customer-level), that has been enrolled in the current DR Programs (residential & commercial sectors), and also from the PUC approved aggregator contracts (GSPA). Additionally, utilization metrics such as the number of events, and event duration are reported in this section.

On June 8, 2021, the Commission approved a new program, Emergency Demand Response Program (“EDRP”), a battery storage incentive program to dispatch electricity between 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily from participating residential and commercial customers, Scheduled Dispatch Program, (“SDP”), to address the potential reserve shortfalls following the AES coal plant retirement. The Company’s implementation plan was approved by the PUC on June 30, 2021, and the Company subsequently filed the updated EDRP tariffs on July 1, 2021.

On February 25, 2022, the Commission modified SDP to include additional participant credits. A fixed Monthly Export Credit to be paid to participants for three years and a $5/kW monthly peak capacity payment for the ten-year duration of the participant’s enrollment.

On May 20, 2022, the Commission approved expansion of SDP to the island of Maui. The program was approved for 15MW.

As of March 31, 2023, the Utilities have received and approved the applications worth up to 20.8MW and 2.8MW for Oahu and Maui respectively.

² “Grid service requirements” refers collectively to the capacity and ancillary services required for reliable operation of the electricity grid.

Hawaiian Electric

Oahu

Maui County

Hawaii Island

Note: Hawaii Island does not currently have a DR program.

Hawaiian Electric

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Energy Storage

Energy storage uses mechanical, chemical, or thermal processes to store generated energy and to later dispatch electrical energy to support the operation of the grid.

Hawaiian Electric intends to use energy storage as part of a portfolio of resources and methods to help support grid reliability and safely integrate cost effective renewable energy onto the utility grids. Energy storage has the potential to smooth intermittent generation from renewable energy and improve the reliable operation of the electrical grid by providing ancillary services such as volt-VAR control, frequency regulation, and by providing contingency reserve. In addition, energy storage may contribute to meeting the system's peak demand.

Energy storage is one potential resource within a diverse resource portfolio. Hawaiian Electric is evaluating energy storage technologies and applications in parallel with ongoing assessments to increase the operational flexibility of the generating units, the development of planning and operational tools, and the development of DR. The deployment plans for energy storage must be developed in concert with other operating practices such as generating unit dispatch, load shed schemes, load management, and customer-focused solutions.

The metrics reported here are for both energy storage systems owned and operated by the electric utility and for those owned and operated by independent power producers ("IPPs"). The amount of power (i.e., capacity) in MW is reported for Hawaiian Electric, the IPPs and the cumulative total for both Hawaiian Electric and IPPs combined.³ The amount of energy stored in megawatt hours (“MWh”) is reported for Hawaiian Electric, the IPPs and the cumulative total for both Hawaiian Electric and IPPs combined.⁴

The following reports the Hawaiian Electric current energy storage metrics.

³ The cumulative power is the sum of the maximum rated output in MW from all energy storage systems.
⁴ The cumulative energy storage capability is the rated energy in MWh stored in all energy systems.