It used to be that the avoided cost (the part of your electricity bill that is due to oil) was higher on the other islands than on O‘ahu. This Hawaiian Electric (HECO) chart shows the rate on different islands back to 2008.

This past October, though, the avoided cost on O‘ahu, Maui and Hawai‘i Island was roughly the same, at approximately 15 cents per kwhr.

Now, O‘ahu’s avoided cost has about doubled. It’s 29 cents per kwhr now, and actually higher than on the other islands.

This is more proof of what has been clear to me since 2007, when I attended my first Peak Oil conference – that oil prices were going to just keep rising.

Avoided costs for January 2012: 

HECO (O‘ahu)

On Peak 29.167 cents per kwhr

Off Peak 19.060 cents per kwhr

HELCO (Big Island)

On Peak 21.656 cents per kwhr

Off Peak 17.656 cents per kwhr

MECO (Maui)

On Peak 20.240 cents per kwhr

Off Peak 19.194 cents per kwhr

MECO (Lana‘i)

On Peak 34.621 cents per kwhr

Off Peak 29.057 cents per kwhr

MECO (Moloka‘i)

On Peak 29.428 cents per kwhr

Off Peak 26.580 cents per kwhr