MEDIA RELEASE

Parker Ranch has launched a new subsidiary, Paniolo Power Company LLC, said Neil “Dutch” Kuyper, CEO of Parker Ranch, Inc.

“The preliminary results from our energy team, led by Siemens, tell us there is the real opportunity to attract capital to invest in our community grid concept,” Kuyper said.

Parker Ranch hired a consortium led by Siemens to evaluate the merits of a community-based energy solution for Greater Waimea and Kohala as well as prepare a utility-grade integrated resource plan.

Electric rates from Hawaii Electric Light Co. (HELCO) are consistently more than 37 cents a kilowatt-hour, and often well more than 40 cents, despite nearly half of the island’s electricity being generated from renewable sources. The national average for electricity rates last year was 12.5 cents per kilowatt-hour.

“We think that the residents and businesses of the Big Island could be better served by a series of community solutions with regional level distributed generation focusing on our plentiful renewable resources,” Kuyper said.

“Because our island is so large, it is in a sense a few islands within the island. Waimea is 55 miles from Kona and 60 miles from Hilo. A combination of several regional solutions for the various parts of the island seems to make logical sense,” he said.

Kuyper said Paniolo Power has begun discussions with potential operating and capital partners to manage and fund the effort.

“We are pleased and excited about the inquiries that we have received in recent months to co-invest in our concept,” he said. “My background lends itself to raise capital for these kinds of investments.”

— Find out more:
www.parkerranch.com
www.prft.org