Hawaiian Electric Put Green Energy Goals Ahead of Fire Mitigation

[useapen]

Hawaiian Electric is facing increased scrutiny and multiple lawsuits for
the role it may have played in the deadly Maui wildfires, including one
complaint that accuses the power utility of years of fire mitigation
inaction and negligence.

The lawsuit, obtained by NBC News, alleges that Hawaiian Electric helped
set the stage for the devastating wildfires that killed at least 110
people last week. The plaintiffs accuse the utility company, which
supplies 95% of the state's electricity, of knowingly failing to protect
its equipment and customers from the threat of fire.

"Hawaiian Electric is not just responsible, and they weren't just
negligent," Mikal Watts, a lead attorney on the case, told NBC. "They were
grossly negligent by making conscious decisions to delay grid
modernization projects that would have prevented this very tragedy."

Three other lawsuits filed in the aftermath of the disaster that were
reviewed by NBC make similar claims.

During the 2019 wildfire season, which was one of the worst in Maui's
history, Hawaiian Electric concluded it needed to do much more to prevent
its power lines from emitting sparks; the company devoted resources to
building out the utility's green energy network instead and took little
action to mitigate fire risk, The Wall Street Journal reported.

According to regulatory filings, the power company spent less than
$245,000 on projects to mitigate fire risk between 2019 and 2022.

A spokesman for Hawaiian Electric told the Journal the company reduces
wildfire risk by trimming or removing trees and upgrading, replacing, and
inspecting equipment. The company has spent approximately $84 million on
maintenance and tree work in Maui County since 2018, the spokesman said.

While the fire's cause has not yet been determined, mounting evidence
suggests that the utility's equipment was to blame. In one video taken by
a resident, a downed power line ignited dry grass along a road near the
historic town of Lahaina, which was destroyed by the blaze. In the hours
before the fire began, a firm that monitors grid sensors reported dozens
of electrical disruptions, including one that coincided with video of a
flash of light from power lines.

During a press conference earlier this week, Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee
Kimura said the utility would be conducting its own investigation.

"We will be doing our own investigation," Kimura said. "The state will be
doing an investigation. We will cooperate fully in that. I think we all
believe it's important to understand what happened, and I think we all
believe it's important to make sure it never happens again."

Hawaii has been pushing to convert to renewable energy since 2008, when an
increase in oil prices sent electrical rates at Hawaiian Electric — which
relied on petroleum imports for 80% of its energy supply — sky-high.
According to the Journal, Hawaii enacted a first-in-the-country law in
2015 mandating that the state's electrical grid be 100% powered by
renewable energy by 2045.

A complete restructuring of the regulatory framework to guide the
transition was completed in 2021, which offered Hawaiian Electric bonuses
for finishing green energy projects on time and threatened it with fines
for missing deadlines.

"You have to look at the scope and scale of the transformation within
[Hawaiian Electric] that was occurring throughout the system," Mina
Morita, who chaired the state utilities commission from 2011 to 2015, told
the Journal. "While there was concern for wildfire risk, politically the
focus was on electricity generation."

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/hawaiian-electric-maui-
wildfires/2023/08/19/id/1131310/