Hawaiian Electric has lifted its call for energy conservation on Hawai‘i Island. Customers may now resume their normal electricity use.

The company’s Keahole CT-5 unit is online ahead of schedule following a major maintenance overhaul. In addition, the company’s Puna Steam unit and Kanoelehua CT-1 unit have been repaired and are online. Combined, these units have up to 53 megawatts of generating capacity. Generation margins have returned to levels where conservation can be lifted. The company and independent power producer Hamakua Energy continue to troubleshoot and repair the generating units that are out of service.

On March 25, Hawaiian Electric asked residential and business customers to conserve electricity due to the unavailability of several large generators and cautioned that rolling outages might be needed. Each island must stand alone without backup from other islands, so the company plans maintenance to allow for contingencies. The system was able to meet demand with the remaining sources, including wind, geothermal, and the solar plus battery plant. However, multiple concurrent unplanned outages resulted in a shortfall on April 14.

Large businesses, including hotels, retailers and government agencies,  made a significant impact by voluntarily reducing their electricity use and implementing conservation measures. Measures included adjusting lighting and temperature controls, turning off lights and air conditioning in unoccupied areas, and modifying water pumping.