Hydro

Water, or wai in Hawaiian, is a sacred, valuable resource to our land and people. Hydropower, energy produced by moving water, has been a part of Kauai’s electricity sources for more than 100 years. Today, KIUC draws power from eight small hydro facilities spread across the island.

KIUC is working with Free Flow Power (FFP), a national expert in small hydro technology, to explore the viability of developing an additional series of hydroelectric projects on Kaua‘i. KIUC and its members – the people of Kaua`i – will own 100 percent of any new hydro project that is built through this process.

These projects are in the early, exploratory stages, and will be subject to rigorous regulatory review and aggressive stakeholder input prior to final approval and construction. KIUC and FFP have filed five preliminary permit applications with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for the following projects:
• Hanalei River Hydroelectric Project – 3.5 megawatts (preliminary permit received)
• Wailua Reservoir Water Power Project – 2.0 megawatts (preliminary permit received)
• Wailua River Hydroelectric Project - 6.6 megawatts (preliminary permit received)
• Kitano Water Power Project – 7.7 megawatts
• Kekaha Waimea Water Power Project – 1.5 megawatts

These preliminary permits do not give KIUC and FFP permission to build anything. If the applications are granted, they merely give KIUC and FFP a three-year window to further explore these projects.

KIUC is approaching each of these projects with an open mind, and will only move forward with projects that make good sense economically, technically, environmentally, and culturally. Neither the decision to move forward with any or all of the projects, nor the final design of each project that moves forward, will be made until the conclusion of that process.

In addition to these new facilities, KIUC and Free Flow Power are studying upgrades to existing hydro facilities from the plantation days to harness additional hydropower.

The links to the right provide more information about the history of hydro on Kauai, the new hydro projects KIUC is exploring, and answers to frequently asked questions about hydro and FERC.

About Free Flow Power Corporation
Free Flow Power is a developer of environmentally-responsible hydropower with offices in Boston, Mass., New Orleans, La., and Bellingham, Wash. The firm is managing the development of conventional hydropower projects, pumped hydropower storage and hydrokinetic generation throughout the US. Free Flow Power has an integrated, in-house team with expertise in engineering, regulation, environmental affairs, power marketing and project finance. For more information on Free Flow Power, visit www.free-flow-power.com.