Hawaii Electric Light opened two utility-owned and -operated electric vehicle DC fast chargers accessible to the Hawaii Island community.
The company hosted dedication ceremonies for the units, one located at its main office, 1200 Kilauea Ave. in Hilo, and the other at the company’s Kona office, 74-5519 Kaiwi St.
“Our customers are at the center of everything we do,” said Jay Ignacio, Hawaii Electric Light president. “One of our goals is to provide customers with more services and options, including an electric vehicle program. The DC Fast Charger is one part of the program.”
In an effort to support clean transportation, Hawaiian Electric Cos. received approval to operate publicly accessible DC Fast Chargers throughout Hawaii Island, Oahu and Maui County. These facilities allow drivers to quickly recharge their vehicles for a per-session fee.
Most charging stations offer chargers at Level 1 or 2, which take anywhere from 3-20 hours to fully charge an EV. These two facilities feature a Level 3 fast charger that can recharge a near-depleted EV battery to 80 percent capacity in about 30 minutes, and even less time for smaller recharges.
This is the first Level 3 charger in East Hawaii and the second in West Hawaii. The DC Fast Charger has a CHAdeMO connection (used mostly by Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi i-MiEV and Kia Soul EV) and a CCS connection (used by the BMW i3).
These fast chargers are available 24/7 with three different rates ranging from $7-$8 per session depending, on time of use. Session prices can change based on the changing cost of electricity. Drivers will be able to safely operate the charger and pay by credit card or by a Greenlots subscription.
Hawaiian Electric Cos. are working with Greenlots — a global provider of open standards-based distributed energy resource solutions — on the Hilo and Kona chargers.
The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission authorized a five-year demonstration for the utilities to install, own and operate up to 25 fast chargers in their service territory. Additional sites are now being sought on Oahu and the Neighbor Islands.
