Hawaiian Electric plans to study where to put power lines below ground.
Some utilities have turned towards burying power lines as a fire prevention measure.
San Diego Gas & Electric plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to put utility lines below ground across San Diego.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has also called on Southern California Edison and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to underground their lines in the wake of the recent wildfires that tore through parts of Los Angeles County early this year.
About half of Hawaiian Electric's utility lines are underground. Some residents in fire-prone communities like Lahaina and Waikoloa would like to see more overhead lines put below ground.
But the cost to underground lines is about $11 million per mile, according to HECO.
Marc Asano, the director of Integrated Grid Planning at HECO, said the study will help the utility determine a strategy for undergrounding its lines, with consideration given to high-risk communities.
He did not specify when the study would be completed.
Asano's comments were part of public presentations on HECO's wildfire strategies before the Public Utilities Commission last week. Find the full recordings of the presentations here.
