Levelized electricity rates across the whole state?
Yes, but it needs to be done in a deliberate, thoughtful manner.
Geothermal is gaining momentum, but we need to make sure we don’t get ahead of ourselves. This must be a bottom-up process, and it must be a Big Island-driven process.
- We must assure public safety and demonstrate appropriate deference to cultural concerns.
- That accomplished, there must be a clear pathway to lower electric rates for Big Islanders.
- And, as the geothermal working group suggests, there needs to be transparency in the distribution of royalties.
So, as geothermal electricity is expanded, Big Island people need to see a plan that shows that rates will stabilize at a reasonable level in a reasonable amount of time. The people have an abundance of common sense.
If geothermal results in lower and stable electricity rates for the Big Island, and if transparent royalty distribution shows that the more geothermal production the more benefit now and for future generations, then Big Islanders will ask themselves, “How can we share?”
There is a big difference between volunteering to share and being forced to share. Local people hate it when the opportunity for sharing is taken away. This is the heart of the matter.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/plotting-a-road-map-for-a-low-carbon-future/article2341616/page2/
The Equinox group envisions major advances in geothermal power, which could provide a steady supply of renewable power for the electricity grid.
Currently, geothermal producers tap steam from natural fissures in the rock . But with enhanced geothermal, producers inject cold water under high pressure to create fractures in the rock, allowing geothermal power to be extracted.
The potential is virtually limitless, if the cost can be brought down. The Equinox report suggests the extractable portion of the U.S.’s geothermal resource is 2,000 times greater than the country’s annual consumption of electricity.