Hawaii All-in on Solar - Goes Big on EVs

With nearly 90,000 rooftop solar systems, Hawaii is a national
leader when it comes to solar power. Now, the state is taking the
next step in its clean energy journey with a goal to electrify
most ground transportation by 2035. 


In this episode of Grid Talk, host Marty Rosenberg talks with
Constance Lau who is the President and CEO of Hawaiian Electric
Industries, the parent of Hawaiian Electric. The discussion
focuses on Hawaii's renewable energy portfolio and the impact of
going all EV.


“We have to get ready for a lot more provision of electricity
because we’ll be providing electricity not to just the normal
parts of the economy - but now if transportation starts switching
over to use electricity as a fuel, we’ll have to be prepared to
provide that as well,” said Lau.


A concurrent goal would see Hawaii become carbon neutral 2045.
That means Hawaii is ramping up renewables. Ms. Lau explains why
it’s more complicated than just adding more capacity.


“We’re seeing very interesting discussions where competing land
use policies are needing to be discussed and judgement calls made
by our policy makers.”


She also talks about the challenge of integrating all the
distributed systems to create an efficient grid for powering
homes, businesses, and vehicles.


Ms. Lau joined the HEI companies in 1984 and has served in
numerous legal, financial, operating and executive roles. She is
a nationally recognized leader in the fields of critical
infrastructure, resilience and physical and cyber security,
banking, and energy. 


Ms. Lau graduated from Yale College with a B.S. in administrative
sciences. She earned a juris doctor from the University of
California Hastings College of the Law and a master’s in business
administration from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.