Hawai‘i Gas Issues Request for Proposals
Hawai‘i Gas, the state’s regulated gas utility, released a request for proposals to purchase renewable natural gas (RNG), in the form of raw biogas and/or bio-methane, as part of its clean fuels diversification strategy.
While RNG can be produced from municipal wastewater treatment centers, landfills and energy crops, Hawaii’s scarce resources for RNG serve to limit scalability and increase costs. Additionally, with this RFP, Hawaii Gas seeks to stimulate private sector RNG development across Hawai‘i.
In 2016, Hawai‘i Gas was awarded the contract to capture and process biogas from one of the City and County of Honolulu’s wastewater treatment plants after a competitive bidding process. Hawai‘i Gas expects the RNG from the project will be on line before the end of the year.
“Further increasing the amount of RNG in our supply mix is an important priority of ours that will bolster Hawai‘i’s clean energy future,” said Alicia Moy, president and CEO, Hawai‘i Gas. “Hawai‘i Gas is committed to achieving this goal in a cost-effective manner for consumers. By further diversifying our fuel supply, we will enhance the resiliency of our system while increasing reliability for our customers. Recent upgrades to our Synthetic Natural Gas (SNG) plant will allow us to easily accommodate the delivery and integration of the RNG into our pipeline without substantial incremental infrastructure investments.”
The company is seeking proposals from local and national suppliers who can provide up to 80,000 therms per day of RNG.
Hawai‘i Gas plans to enter into one or more fuel supply agreements for RNG, contingent on approval from the Hawai‘i Public Utilities Commission. Interested parties can obtain the request for proposal by biogasRFP@hawaiigas.com. Proposals are due Sept. 19, 2018 at 2 p.m. Hawai‘i Standard Time.
Hawai‘i landowners and crop developers interested in exploring the development of locally produced RNG are encouraged to contact the company at: biogasDEV@hawaiigas.com.