Hawaiian Electric Co. today launched a renewed effort to add at least 200 megawatts of renewable energy generation for Oahu.

HECO submitted a draft proposal to the Public Utilities Commission that will set the guidelines for developers that want to participate in the program.

The energy can be produced on Oahu or on a neighboring island from where the energy can “reasonably” be transmitted to Oahu via an undersea cable, according to HECO.

The utility said its goal is to have the renewable energy delivered to the HECO grid no later than Dec. 31, 2018.

“We must get Hawaii off oil and with our larger population and limited resources Oahu faces the biggest challenge,” said Robbie Alm, HECO executive vice president. “Recent price spikes and continued turmoil in oil-producing regions are reminders that we have t cut our dependence on oil as quickly and completely as possible,” he said.

The PUC ordered HECO to seek new proposals for renewable energy generation after a tentative plan by First Wind to build a large-scale wind project on Molokai failed earlier this year.