In Action
Waimea Mauka Hydro
Clients on this strategically located utility repair and upgrade project were the State of Hawai‘i and the U.S. Navy. For years this 1 MW vertical shaft pelton plant struggled to produce half its rated output due to a combination of mechanical and electrical problems. We rebuilt the runner and the nozzles, re-wound the generator, and replaced and upgraded the controls. The plant peaked at 1.25 MW during commissioning.
We rebuilt and upgraded this utility repair plant for the State of Hawai‘i and U.S. Navy.
Wenko Energy
In 1982 Fred Koehnen and Ed Wence, residential neighbors on Ainako Stream in Hilo, attended a Pacific Hydro seminar and decided to build a hydro. They organized Wenco Energy and by mid-1983 were producing 6.7 KW from a crossflow turbine fed from a pond between their backyards—producing enough energy annually to far exceed their combined household needs and thus generating a revenue stream from sales to the local utility.
This project for two neighbors on in Hilo produced enough energy to sell the excess to the local utility.
Green Energy Hydro
This 125 KW utility parallel plant in Koloa delivered a 5-year payback on investment—and supplies enough power for 75 homes in the surrounding Kauai South Shore area while meeting the electrical needs of the on-site Hawaiian Mahogany mill. Hawaiian Mahogany runs a carefully balanced silviculture operation combining high-value lumber trees with high-production nitrogen fixing species that create a self-fertilizing system. Electricity from this on-site hydro along with on-site bio fuel sources, makes this company a model for sustainable agriculture in Hawaii.
This 125 KW utility parallel plant supplies enough power for 75 homes on Kaua‘i's South Shore.
Ho‘owaiwai Farms
A horticultural and aquaculture operation in Papaiko, Hawai‘i Island, Ho‘owaiwai Farm’s multi-use hydro system is unique. We’ve built many “off the grid” systems as well as utility parallel plants, but this 90 KW generator can be operated both as a stand-alone power supply as well as a grid connected revenue source. This flexible design automatically protects the operation from any interruption in power during a prolonged utility outage.
This 90 KW generator can be operated both as a stand alone power supply as well as a grid-connected revenue source.
The Bhutan Experience
Since 1991 we’ve been consulting in Bhutan, a small Buddhist nation in the Eastern Himalayas that generates all its electricity and most of its foreign exchange from hydropower.
World renowned for measuring progress in terms of “Gross National Happiness” rather than Gross National Product, the Bhutanese see all life as sacred and have shown the world that hydropower can be developed with respect for all living beings.
