State senators are asking stakeholders from across the energy industry to convene a working group to figure out the best way to ramp up local production of renewable fuels.
According to Senate Concurrent Resolution 97, increasing the production of renewable fuels is critical to cutting carbon emissions from Hawaiʻi's transportation sector.
"The state has ambitious decarbonization targets," said Eric Wright, president of Par Hawaii. "There's no way to do that without liquid renewable fuels."
Par Hawaii, the only petroleum refinery in the state, is in the process of converting some of its facilities to produce renewable fuels.
Par specifically requested to be a part of the working group. Other participants include the state Department of Transportation, both electric utilities, and several industry representatives.
The Hawaiʻi State Energy Office has been tapped to lead the group. HSEO testified in support of the resolution, but Deputy Chief Energy Officer Stephen Walls told HPR that there is a cap on the amount of renewable fuels that can be produced in the islands.
"We know we can produce some local biofuels, but it's not going to be enough," Walls said.
Hawaiʻi doesn't have enough land to grow crops like soybeans and corn to produce renewable fuels on a major scale. That's just a reality the industry has to deal with, Wright said.
"There's only a certain amount of these feedstocks that are available in Hawai'i," Wright said. "And so we'll have to turn to importing these feedstocks."
Still, Wright thinks there's plenty of progress to be made. Par is partnering with conservation company Pono Pacific to work with landowners who are interested in plant-based oil production.
"They started field trials, so they started to grow some of these crops here locally to see how they perform," Wright said. "And we're really excited about where that can take us."
If the resolution is adopted, the working group would have to submit its first report to the state Legislature by the end of 2025.
