Hawaiian Electric Company seeks 42mgy biofuel for power plant

In Honolulu, Hawaii, Hawaiian Electric Company is looking for a 42 million gallon-a-year biofuel supply that will be used to power its Kahe Power Plant in Leeward, Oahu.

Preferably, the biofuel will derive from Hawaii-based feedstocks, however bidders may also propose a combination of local biofuel and biofuel sourced from outside of Hawaii. The company also explained that those who cannot supply the full amount may still bid as it may award a number of contracts.

'We continue to promote a local agricultural energy industry in Hawaii as we convert as much of our generation as possible to sustainable, renewable green fuels,' says Robbie Alm, executive vice president of Hawaiian Electric Company. 'Biofuel, locally produced to the greatest extent possible, is an important part of Hawaii's clean energy future, along with energy from the sun, wind, ocean, waste-to-energy, hydro and geothermal.'

The Kahe Power Plant is the largest generating station in Hawaii with six oil-fired generators with a capacity of 650MW.
The chosen proposals, which must be submitted by 29 July, will be reviewed and then approved by the Hawaii State Public Utilities Commission. The approval process is scheduled to take place in 2012.

Additional information is available to prospective bidders at http://biofuelsupply.heco.com