FAQ
Savio Updates
In March 2023 Savio Solar announced that HECO awarded the project a contract. Next, HECO will submit the contract for approval to the PUC (Public Utilities Commision).
Qualifications As A Subscriber
Yes! Subscriptions will be available to any HECO customer on Oʻahu, whether it’s an apartment, someone who rents, single family home and even small businesses. However, Savio solar will first recruit subscribers who reside closer to the project such as Nānākuli, Māʻili, and Waiʻanae residents. After those folks are served, Savio Solar will move forward with expanding customer subscriptions island wide on Oʻahu.
Unfortunately, the CBRE program prohibits customers who already have rooftop solar to sign up for a CBRE subscription.
When a customer applies to subscribe, HECO will evaluate the last 12 months of the customer’s electricity consumption and inform Savio Solar the maximum subscription size in kilowatts (kW) that the customer qualifies for. The customer will be allowed to register for that specific amount of kW, or less if they chose to buy less, but not more than the assigned amount.
Yes. Condominium residents can qualify to subscribe. If your condo building is master metered (one electricity bill for the whole building), then the whole building will have to agree to subscribe.
Yes. Renters can subscribe! As long as you are a HECO customer and you pay the electricity bill, you can subscribe to offset your usage. If your landlord pays the bill, then they will have to subscribe instead of you.
Partnering Companies
Savio solar has hired Shake Energy Collaborative to facilitate the community design process and manage the CBRE Program. Savio Solar will also contract a Hawaiʻi-based company to install the project.
HECO
Yes HECO requested proposals from different developers for CBRE projects in 2022, HECO then selected the Savio Solar Māʻiili project in 2023. HECO will submit a contract with Savio Solar for approval from the PUC for approval later this year.
Investors
No, you cannot buy a subscription as an investment to resell or otherwise gain income off of. Subscriptions are only for offsetting subscribers’ electricity bills. Savio Solar is focusing subscriptions first to residential customers that reside in the areas of Waiʻanae to Nānākuli but businesses could be eligible to sign up to offset their electricity costs.
Tax Credit & Fee’s
The project’s investors tax credits will be allocated to a Tax Equity investor (an investment company that can benefit from the large amount of tax credits). Individual subscribers will not receive tax credits or rebates for their purchase.
The Solar Owners Association (SOA) will have an operations and maintenance contract with a solar company. This company will be paid out of the income from the project which includes a small maintenance fee as well as revenue from the utility to the SOA directly.
Condo
The electricity produced from the solar farm will all flow onto the grid and HECO will distribute that energy to all customers on the grid the same as electricity from other power plants. The way that subscribers get a benefit for that electricity is a virtual credit on their electricity bill proportional to the size of their subscription in kilowatts. The physical electricity from the Savio Solar farm does not need to actually flow to the subscribers’ homes in order to get the virtual credit.
Start and Completion
Construction will start in late 2024 and the project is expected to start operations (producing electricity) in early 2026. The project contract with the utility is for 20 years so it will end in 2046.
Pricing & Quantity
We are unable to share how much each unit will cost until closer to the close of construction because several costs could change between now and then. But we expect the price to be less than the cost of rooftop solar.
Site Plan & Placement
You can find the draft site layout on the project description website: Savio Solar Draft Site Layout.
The property is privately owned and is not currently available for visitation but stay tuned for a public event at the site closer to operations.
