For utilities around the globe grappling with the unique challenges of bringing additional renewable energy into the electric grid, nothing beats learning from the first-hand experiences of those who have already made the transition.
Utilities Partner Internationally to Support Renewable Energy Expansion
00:04:19
Video Transcript
Hawaii is undergoing a major shift and a major commitment to renewable energy for its future. Hawaii currently has the most aggressive renewable portfolio standards in the United States. There is no recipe or roadmap for how to do it. Our investment in renewable energy started years ago and we have learned from that. We have pushed the envelope with it, but it hasn't come without its challenges. And its challenges are manyfold. They're economic, they're operational, they require a transformation in how we conduct our business on a day-to-day basis. My name is Retno Sentianingsih and I work for USAID Indonesia. In Indonesia, 20 percent of the population still don't have access to energy or electricity in their daily life. USAID Indonesia, we work very closely with the state-owned utility company, PLN, in trying to introduce ways to accelerate integration of renewable energy into the system. In Indonesia we say, "Dimana ada kemauan, di situ ada jalan," which means, "When there is a will there is a way to do it." We were approached by USAID and asked if we would be interested in a technology exchange with the electric power industry from Indonesia. They were interested in our achievements with renewable energy and energy efficiency on island grids. The question was, "Would we be willing to share our experiences and develop a professional relationship with our counterparts from Indonesia?" Wanting to share what we have learned with others that are embarking on a similar journey, we welcomed the opportunity. The first time, in 2011, we hosted the delegation here in Honolulu. We were able to not only have a series of high level technical meetings, but we were able to share with them some first-hand experiences with field visits and meeting with people that were out in the operation of these facilities. What we found initially is that we had a lot in common. We were sharing ideas and there were problems and there were solutions. It's just been a relationship that has been worthwhile, not only from the position of sharing what we had to offer for them, but what they could share back with us. The Executive Exchange with HECO allows PLN to learn from HECO their real experience and the technology advances of renewable energy integration into the grid. These two programs are complimentary. When new technologies in renewable energy are coming into the country there are a lot of similar challenges that they are facing and they can share the experience in dealing with those challenges. It's very common to work in close coordination with other utilities around the world. It's through those relationships that we advance our operations, we advance the technology and we solve problems together.
November 1, 2015
October 22, 2015
Comment
Make a general inquiry or suggest an improvement.