Posted on: Sunday, January 25, 2004

Renewable energy backed

Advertiser Staff

A bill before the Legislature would let alternative-energy producers form cooperatives to jointly negotiate with utilities and make use of revenue bonds.

House Bill 1692, introduced by Rep. Cynthia Thielen, R-50th (Kailua, Mokapu), and co-sponsored by Rep. Hermina Morita, D-14th (Kapa'a, Hanalei), would put operators of wind, wave, solar and other alternative-energy systems in a much stronger position when negotiating power sales contracts with companies that distribute electricity, Thielen said.

"The electric company comes to the table and it's been very definitely too powerful. It's a monopoly. This would make them (renewable-energy producers) more powerful," she said.

The bill adds renewable-energy cooperatives to the agricultural, consumer and housing cooperatives already permitted under state law. It also would authorize issuing revenue bonds to pay the cost of building, upgrading and buying transmission facilities.

"The legislation will allow five or more persons involved in the generation of electricity from renewable resources and technologies to organize a cooperative, nonprofit, membership corporation and to sell that electricity at wholesale," she said.

The bill, which has passed first reading, is in the House Energy and Consumer Protection committees.