Rolling outages likely to continue on Hawai‘i Island due to generation shortfall

Hawaiian Electric may initiate rolling outages in parts of Hawaiʻi Island this morning, and possibly this evening, due to a generation shortfall and lower-than-normal wind and solar resources.

A rolling outage occurred Sunday night where the power company reported 21,557 customers around the island experienced a 30-minute outage starting at 8:54 p.m. and ending at 9:59 p.m.

Brief emergency outages may be initiated around the island as early as 6 a.m. to prevent loss of power to an even greater number of customers. The impacted areas and the timing of the outages are based on the amount of electric demand that needs to be reduced.

Hawaiian Electric has asked Hawai‘i Island customers to reduce their electricity use throughout today, and especially from 5 to 9 p.m. tonight.   

Suggestions include turning off air conditioners and unneeded lighting, shutting off water heaters and pumps, and delaying activities like cooking, showering, laundry, and dishwashing until late in the evening.

These outages are a result of Hawaiian Electric’s Hill 5 steam unit tripping offline on Saturday. Its Puna steam unit and CT-1 combustion turbine unit are also under repair.

Its Keahole CT-5 unit is expected to return from annual overhaul by the end of April. These units generate about 62 megawatts combined. In addition, independent power producer Hāmākua Energy remains offline. The island’s largest generator provides up to 60 megawatts to the grid.

Alerts and updates will be posted on the company’s Facebook (HawaiianElectric) and X (@HIElectricLight) accounts. The Hawai‘i County Civil Defense also will send emergency alerts through local radio and its Everbridge emergency notification system.