In short: Hawaiʻi Island pays the most for power in Hawaii: 48.31¢ per kWh on average in 2024, and 47¢ to 52¢ under Hawaiian Electric’s October 2026 rates. It also has the least reliable grid, at about nine hours without power per customer in 2024. In August 2026, Hurricane Lala cut power to more than 65,700 island customers.
Below: what that means for backup power, solar, batteries and EV charging in Hilo, Kailua-Kona and around the island, and where permits come from. For statewide rules (the state tax credit, contractor licensing, the end of net metering), see our Hawaii energy guide.
Hawaiʻi Island at a glance
- Utility: Hawaii Electric Light, part of Hawaiian Electric, serves the whole island. From October 1, 2026, its standard residential rate is 46.84¢ per kWh for the first 300 kWh a month, 50.67¢ for the next 700 and 51.93¢ above 1,000, plus a $13.14 customer charge.
- Outages (2024): 540 minutes per customer including major events, about 9 hours, and 365 minutes without them. Customers averaged 4.4 interruptions, the most of any Hawaii utility (EIA-861).
- Sun: NASA’s coarse grid gives 5.28 kWh per square meter per day for both Hilo and Kona (2001–2020), or about 1,540 kWh a year per kW of panels by our rough estimate. Real sun varies a lot between the wet windward side and the dry Kona and Kohala coasts.
- Top hazards: FEMA’s National Risk Index (December 2025) rates Hawaii County’s overall risk “relatively high.” Lightning and volcanic activity rate “very high,” followed by earthquake, inland flooding and wildfire.
- Public charging: 52 ports at 25 locations in Kailua-Kona and 39 at 18 locations in Hilo (AFDC, October 2026).
Your utility and what it means
Hawaiian Electric’s customer programs apply here, with Hawaiʻi Island’s own export rates:
- Smart Renewable Energy Export: for 2024–2026, exports earn 10.6¢ per kWh from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 23.1¢ in the 5 to 9 p.m. peak and 14.8¢ overnight. Credits left at the yearly true-up expire; new customers keep their rates for seven years. See the export program page.
- Smart Renewable Energy Non-Export: any size, with no power sent to the grid.
- BYOD Plus: open on Hawaiʻi Island. It pays $400 per kW of battery power you commit, upfront, and another $400 per kW for qualifying low- and moderate-income homes. The battery exports in a two-hour daily window you choose, for five years. See the BYOD Plus terms.
Hawaiian Electric warned in April 2026 that oil prices could push typical bills up 20% to 30%, with Hawaiʻi Island increases starting in May and June.
Backup power on Hawaiʻi Island
Even in a quiet year, the island loses power more often and for longer than anywhere else in Hawaii: about six hours per customer on normal days alone in 2024. Hurricane Lala in August 2026 showed the worst case. According to Hawaiian Electric’s updates:
- The storm passed 35 miles south of the island on August 15 and 16, with gusts of 91 mph in Kohala. More than 65,700 customers lost power, including all of the east and south sides plus Waimea and Honokaʻa.
- Trees brought down poles along a 42-mile stretch of transmission line on the Hāmākua coast, and 21 transmission lines were damaged in all. Puna Geothermal Venture, Hāmākua Energy Partners and two wind farms were cut off from the grid, and Hawaiian Electric warned it might have to shed load.
- Flash floods in Kaʻū washed away poles, roads and bridges. Pāhala and Kaʻū Hospital got power back on August 27, most repairs finished on August 31 and Wood Valley on September 8, more than three weeks after the storm.
If floodwater reached your electrical equipment, Hawaiian Electric won’t reconnect until a licensed electrician inspects it and certifies it safe. Under its Rule 16, it also isn’t liable for storm or shutoff losses such as spoiled food.
Wildfire shutoffs are the other risk. Hawaiʻi Island’s Public Safety Power Shutoff zones are North Hawaiʻi from Kohala to Waikoloa, West Hawaiʻi between Kalaoa and Hōlualoa, and the area from Mauna Kea Access Road to Waikiʻi Ranch, about 19,300 customers. A PSPS was used here in November 2025. Hawaiian Electric is also replacing poles and adding covered lines in Waimea and Kawaihae. Check your address on the PSPS page or at 1-844-483-8666.
- Solar plus battery: the setup that keeps working through a multi-week outage, because it recharges every sunny day. A home battery also saves you the island’s peak-hour rates.
- Generator: worth having in rural Puna, Kaʻū and Hāmākua, where Lala showed repairs can take weeks. Run it outdoors at least 20 feet from the house, exhaust away, CO alarms inside (CPSC), and keep it clear of dry grass in Kona and Kohala. See generator installation.
- Power station: a portable power station covers phones, Wi-Fi, lights and medical devices through short outages and shutoffs.
Size a system with the battery backup calculator or the generator sizing tool, and compare options in our backup power guide.
Solar on Hawaiʻi Island
The island had 19,027 solar systems on Hawaiian Electric’s grid at the start of 2026, and owners added 490 more by June. At the 50.67¢ middle tier, each kW of panels saves about $780 a year when you use its output at home, by our estimate. Exported in the daytime at 10.6¢, the same output earns about $160 (estimates, not quotes). Size the system to what you use, and store the rest for the evening.
Where you live changes the answer. Weather differs a lot between windward Hilo and the leeward Kona and Kohala coasts, and NASA’s grid can’t tell them apart, so run your address through the solar potential tool and the solar savings calculator rather than relying on an island average. Read how solar installation works, what it costs and how export credits compare with net metering.
Home batteries on Hawaiʻi Island
In EIA’s 2024 count, 2,371 of the island’s 14,358 home solar systems had a battery, about one in six. Given the outage record, that share looks low: a battery is the piece that turns solar into backup power, since panels alone shut off when the grid goes down. If you join BYOD Plus, ask how much capacity stays reserved for your own outages. See battery costs and battery installation.
EV charging on Hawaiʻi Island
Distances are long here, and public ports are concentrated in Kona and Hilo. At about 30 kWh per 100 miles and the 50.67¢ tier, charging at home costs roughly $15 per 100 miles (an estimate). Midday charging from your own solar costs far less. Hawaiian Electric says EV owners may qualify for a time-of-use rate; see its EV rates page. A Level 2 charger needs a 240-volt circuit and a permit, installed by a licensed electrician. See EV charger installation and the EV charging cost calculator.
Drive on another fuel? See every alternative fuel station in Hilo: hydrogen, propane, natural gas, E85 ethanol, biodiesel and renewable diesel.
Permits and inspections
- County of Hawaiʻi, Department of Public Works, Building Division: building permits are applied for through the county’s online EPIC system. Ask the Building Division what it needs for solar, batteries, generators and EV chargers before work starts.
- Hawaiian Electric: solar and batteries need an approved interconnection application before they switch on.
- Wiring: transfer switches, battery panels and chargers are work for a licensed electrician; the state page explains how to check a license.
In Waikoloa, Kona and other planned communities, get written association approval before you sign.
Cities we cover
- Hilo
- Kailua-Kona
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Hawaiʻi Island energy questions
Why does the Big Island lose power more than Oʻahu?
We report the record rather than guess at causes. In 2024, Hawaii Electric Light customers averaged 540 outage minutes and 4.4 interruptions, against 234 minutes and 1.9 interruptions on Oʻahu. Even without major events, the island’s figure was 365 minutes. Long lines across rural terrain, as Lala’s Hāmākua damage showed, make repairs slow.
Is Kailua-Kona in a wildfire shutoff zone?
Part of West Hawaiʻi is: Hawaiian Electric’s zone runs between Kalaoa and Hōlualoa. Other zones are Kohala to Waikoloa and Mauna Kea Access Road to Waikiʻi Ranch. Check your exact address on the PSPS maps or at 1-844-483-8666, and sign up for alerts.
My equipment flooded in a storm. Can power be turned back on?
Not right away. After Lala, Hawaiian Electric said that if floodwater submerged electrical equipment, a licensed electrician must inspect the system and certify it safe before service is restored.
How much do solar exports earn on Hawaiʻi Island?
For 2024–2026: 10.6¢ per kWh in the daytime, 23.1¢ from 5 to 9 p.m. and 14.8¢ overnight, against retail rates of about 47¢ to 52¢. That gap is why most of the value comes from using your own solar, directly or from a battery.
Sources
EIA-861, 2024 (price = residential revenue ÷ sales; reliability; net metering); Hawaiian Electric effective rate summary for October 1, 2026, export, BYOD Plus and PSPS pages, and 2024–2026 news releases (PSPS launch, fuel prices, rooftop solar, pole hardening, Hurricanes Lala and Nolo); County of Hawaiʻi Department of Public Works; NASA POWER, 2001–2020; FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025; AFDC; CPSC. Read October 2026. Estimates are ours and labelled.