Hawaiian Electric to Retire Fossil Fuel Plants Despite EPA Easing Emissions Rules
Hawaiian Electric has announced its continued commitment to retiring two major fossil fuel-fired power plants on Maui, the Mā‘alaea Generating Station and the Kahului Power Plant, despite recent actions by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA recently repealed most of the Biden administration’s greenhouse gas requirements for U.S. power plants and proposed rescinding all remaining greenhouse gas standards for the power sector. The agency justified these changes by stating that the previous rules were "effectively forcing plants to retire rather than setting standards they could actually meet." However, Hawaiian Electric stated that these EPA revisions will "have no effect" on its plans, reaffirming its commitment to Hawaii's clean energy goals, renewable energy integration, grid modernization, and emissions reduction objectives. The company has been working towards a state-mandated goal of 100% renewable energy by 2045 and had reached 37% renewable energy across the five islands it serves as ...
