In observance of King Kamehameha Day, our offices will be closed on Monday, June 12, 2023. Customer Renewable Programs
Battery Bonus
Cash Incentive to Add Energy Storage to an Existing or New Rooftop Solar System
Hawaiian Electric will pay a cash incentive and provide bill credits for customers on Oahu and Maui to add energy storage (a battery) to an existing or new rooftop solar system. These perks will help move Hawaii toward its goal of 100% clean energy by 2045 and add more renewable resources to the grid as Hawaiian Electric retires generators fired by fossil fuels.
The Public Utilities Commission has capped the program at a total of 40 megawatts (MW) supplied from storage on Oahu and 15 MW supplied from storage on Maui. All customers will receive $850 per kilowatt (kW).
Hawaiian Electric worked with the solar industry to add incentives and make other improvements to the program. Regulators approved the following amendments effective June 1, 2021.
- Customers not in the company's Net Energy Metering Program will receive a fixed monthly bill credit for energy exported to the grid for three years. For Non-NEM customers, the credit is an amount equivalent to the respective retail rate for electricity exported during the two-hour period. The retail rates will be updated at the beginning of each calendar quarter.
- Customers will receive a $5 per kW monthly peak capacity payment for the 10-year duration of the program. The payment is offered as a bill credit.
Committed capacity is the amount of kW discharged from the battery for two hours during the window of 6 – 8:30 p.m. The committed capacity determines the incentive. For example, a 15 kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery can commit 5 kW or 10 kWh over two hours, therefore, the incentive would be $850 x 5 kW= $4,250. If weather does not allow for sufficient battery charging there will be no penalty to the customer as long as the battery storage is paired with PV generation with a ratio of at least 1 kW of generation for every 2 kWh of committed capacity.
Customers who wish to participate with an existing solar system and are presently enrolled in a customer energy program (such as Net Energy Metering, Customer Grid Supply, or others) will continue to receive full benefits from these programs. A customer must install a battery of any size and may add new panels as long as the additional PV capacity is not more than twice the battery size. Existing customers are customers that have received Permission to Operate before July 1, 2021 on Oahu and before June 1, 2022 on Maui.
The owner of the solar-plus-storage system will receive the incentive. To receive the incentive faster, the bill account holder should be the owner of the storage system. That can be the residential or commercial customer owning the system or a company that leases the system to the homeowner or business.
This incentive payment is considered income. Hawaiian Electric will provide participants with tax forms and report information to the IRS and Hawaii Department of Taxation. Hawaiian Electric cannot offer tax advice. Consult a tax preparer with concerns about individual circumstances. In some cases, federal tax credits may be available.
Participation
The total program term is 10 years. Customers who participate must use and/or export electricity stored in the battery at the committed amount on a firm two-hour schedule specified by Hawaiian Electric between 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. (for example, 6:15 p.m. to 8:15 p.m.) daily including weekends and holidays. The initial commitment is through February 28, 2024 on Oahu and through Dec. 31, 2024 on Maui.
Once the battery is installed and operational, seven consecutive days of operational performance data will be collected to show how much the battery is discharging during the 2 hour peak period, verifying the incentive amount. Inverter information, permit, and other information is also required to approve the install as part of the validation process.
Customers must work with a solar contractor to add storage to an existing solar system or install a new solar-plus-storage system. Hawaiian Electric cannot recommend a contractor or equipment. If customers do not have a contractor, Hawaiian Electric recommends comparing bids from at least three contractors.
The contractor will help fill out forms and submit them through Hawaiian Electric's on-line Customer Interconnection Tool. Securing a building permit with the appropriate county building department or proof of permit application is required as part of the application, and will determine the incentive amount.
Application Checklist:
- Please use the account holder as your System Owner operator to decrease time to process incentive check.
- Enrollment in approved Hawaiian Electric renewable energy rate program on Oahu and Maui: NEM/+, CGS/+, SE, CSS, SIA
- Must install new battery (Replacement batteries are not eligible, and adding more storage is eligible if increasing battery kW, not kWh)
- Must use battery two hours each day between 6 - 8:30 p.m. We provide exact start time.
- Proof of permit application with county permitting office
- On Maui, contractors may submit a completed Hawaiian Electric Grant of Authority form to the county permitting office to obtain a building permit number.
- Submission of a Battery Bonus amendment in the Customer Interconnection Tool
- Review the Battery Bonus Program Agreement (PDF)
- Seven days of operational data, as required
- See Schedule Dispatch Handbook (PDF) for instructions on delivery of verification data, and use the 7 day SDP Verification Log (Excel) to submit data.
- Signed W9 (Owner Operator of battery, see amendment page 1. Must be one person on W9) Electronic signature is encouraged using DocuSign. W9 forms also can be printed out, signed and mailed to: Hawaiian Electric, P. O. Box 2750, Honolulu, HI 96840, Attn: AL18-SG
| As of 3/2/23 | Enrolled MWs1 |
|---|---|
| Oahu | 17.2 MW |
| Maui | 1.8 MW |
- If a start time is not provided within an email sent by Company with subject “Project ID P-AMD-22-xxxxxx: Your application has passed completeness review" or "Your AMEND system has been conditionally approved", please use start time = 6:07pm for Oahu and 6:06pm for Maui.
Application Period
On Oahu applications will be accepted through Aug 14, 2023, or until the 40MW cap is reached. On Maui applications will be accepted through June 30, 2024 or until the 15 MW cap is reached. If the storage system's contracted capacity or export amount changes, it must be corrected within 30 days from notification or a $100 per month charge will appear on the customer's bill.
Termination
Customers may end participation before the 10-year commitment with a 60-day written notice to Hawaiian Electric and must repay a prorated portion of the incentive. Please fill out the Notice of Termination form and submit to batterybonus@hawaiianelectric.com to terminate contract.
Questions?
- Contact us by email at connect@hawaiianelectric.com
