New Energy Rebates In Hawaii Can Be Used for Energy Efficient Lighting

Nearly a year after Hawaiian Electric Co. started outsourcing incentives programs designed to encourage consumers to save energy, the offerings have expanded fourfold and more are in the works.

On June 30, the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission awarded a two-year contract valued at $38 million to Science Applications International Corp. to “aggressively promote and implement energy-efficiency programs” for Hawaiian Electric’s residential customers and businesses.

The plan was seen as a way to support the state’s Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, which commits to reducing the state’s energy use by 30 percent within 20 years, in addition to requiring that 40 percent of Hawaii’s energy come from renewable sources such as wind and solar.

Under Hawaiian Electric, the incentive programs, which are funded by ratepayers through a monthly surcharge, had been limited mostly to rebates for investing in solar hot water heating systems and Energy Star appliances on Oahu. Since Science Applications International of San Diego started running the effort, the newly named Hawaii Energy rebate programs have been expanded to include Maui, Molokai, Lanai and the Big Island. Science Applications International also plans to launch incentives in the next couple of months, including a loan program for purchasing solar hot water heaters.

As Science Applications International completes the first year of its contract, Hawaii businesses, ranging from energy auditors and solar contractors to appliance retailers, are benefiting from new and expanded initiatives as consumers take advantage of the programs.

“This first year was a transition, and now we’re really ready to change a lot of stuff,” said Derrick Sonoda, program manager for the Hawaii Energy program and a Science Applications International employee.

Sonoda previously oversaw the energy-efficiency programs when they were managed by Hawaiian Electric.

While the incentives have been funded by Hawaiian Electric’s ratepayers since the mid-1990s, a formal surcharge was not implemented by the PUC until Jan. 1, 2009, in preparation for the work to be contracted out.

The surcharge — labeled Public Benefits Fund on bills — amounts to 1 percent of the utility’s revenues from electricity sales. The average residential customer paid about $1.19 each month into the fund in 2009, and is paying $2.86 this year. That has translated into a $19 million budget for SAIC for the year ending June 30, with 70 percent going toward rebates and incentives, about 20 percent going toward program costs, and less than 10 percent covering SAIC’s services.


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