COM 0493.087 2000-2002 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

1°he Honorable Keith W. hue Page 2 December 8, 1993 Under these circumstances, we must not allow the residents- of the Island of Hawaii to face the risks that would arise from waiting until late 1996 or beyond for power provided by an 4PP. HELLO has learned, from the delays encountered by Puna Geothermal Venture, that the best-laid plans can go awry. So far, alt of the IPPs with which HELLO has existing firm power purchase contracts have either encountered delays in developing their projects or have had unexpected periods in which they have ceased production. Especially in Nght of this experience, HELLO believes that it is in the public's best interest, first, to build the 1995 generation unit at Keahole, and, second, to plan for the following generation unit through concurrent planning by HELLO fora utility- constructed addition along with discussions with IPPs proposing units in that time frame. In this way, the public will have better assurances that a reliable source of generation, providing power at a reasonable cost to the consumers, will be available when it is needed. would like to address the fourth paragraph of your comment letter, which states: " the statement on page 3-44 that the proposed expansion is consistent with the Sfate's land use classification is misleading. A generator station belongs in the urban district, 7-he existence of the generator station in the Conservation District is a result of unplanned historical circumstances. It v~ould be approprlat~' t® pe°t%tit'brl tl'B~ ,.and (15~ fioTrlrBllSSi®n t® rim®V~' tl7e parC~'I from th@ `COnservatl®n DlStrict.' H~LCO believes that the proposed expansion of the Keahole Generating Station should be permitted in this instance. °fhis conclusion is based, among other things, on the fiollowing: 1. I°BELCO constructed its generating station at Keahole in reliance upon a Conservation ®istrict Use Permit issued by the Board of Land-.and ~latural resources in ®ecember 1973. Subsequently, three C®UP amendments were issued by the Land Soard in February 1984, P~bruary 1987, and September 1988. Since 1973, excluding operating costs, HELLO has invested more than $10 million in the Keahole Generating Station in reliance upon the CDUP approval and amendments granted by the Land Soard over the -last 20 years. We believe it would be unfair and unreasonable to now require t~~LCO to pursee the State Land Use and County rezoning: approvals efor~; u~sder~aking the proposed expansion of the Keahole Generating Station.' a -also believe that this would be very detrimental to HELLO and would prejudice HELCO's •g ~