2014 Hawaii Governor's race: on Energy & Oil

David Ige: Reduce fossil fuel use; increase renewable energy

Energy Action Plan:
• Direct the Hawai'i State Energy Office to execute policies and programs to develop a clean energy industry in Hawai'i, including training and hiring a strong local workforce.
• Work with key stakeholders to address and overcome the challenges in meeting more aggressively our Hawai'i Clean Energy Initiative goals and targets by modernizing the electrical grid, determining the proper mix of fuels at affordable cost, and working with the counties to reduce fossil fuel use in ground transportation.
• Support state-of-the-art technology that increases distributed generation and power sharing between consumers, and enabling installation of rooftop solar systems.
• Create programs and incentives to increase clean energy production in Hawai'i.

Neil Abercrombie: Liquefied natural gas is a "bridge fuel" to renewables

ABERCROMBIE: I see LNG as a "bridge fuel" to wean ourselves off of imported oil as we pivot to more renewable energy use. One of the most critical challenges of in

David Ige: Tie rooftop solar into the electric grid

A: Hawaii should develop an electric utility platform that allows it to generate electricity from a portfolio of fuels. I believe it is premature to make a decision on long-term use and importation of LNG at this time until we can determine its impact long- and short-range. In the meantime, we should continue to support energy efficiency/conservation, PV/solar, wind and other renewable technologies to achieve clean energy goals.

Q: What thoughts do you have on improving the electric distribution system (the grid) so more renewables can be in the mix?

A: I will push for more investment in renewable energy and take action to increase the amount of rooftop solar that ratepayers can install. Rooftop PV is currently one of the best renewable energy sources in Hawaii. I'll push for grid technology that allows for increasing amounts of distributed generation and power sharing between consumers.