45-megawatt wind project proposed for Kahuku site

A California-based developer is proposing to build Oahu’s third wind energy project next to an existing wind farm in Kahuku.

Champlin GEI Wind Holdings will outline its plans Wednesday at a public meeting in Kahuku, according to a notice filed Friday by the state Office of Environmental Quality Control. The meeting is set for 5:30 p.m. at the Kahuku Village Association Community Center.

The 45-megawatt Na Pua Makani wind project would be built in two phases on state and private land adjacent to a 30-megawatt facility owned by Boston-based First Wind Holdings Inc. Champlin’s plans call for eight wind turbines to be built in the first phase and six turbines in the second phase.

First Wind also owns Oahu’s other wind energy project, a 69-megawatt facility about five miles northwest of Haleiwa.

Hawaiian Electric Co. confirmed it is finalizing an agreement to buy electricity produced by the Na Pua Makani wind project. The agreement will be subject to approval by the state Public Utilities Commission.

Champlin is taking over the project from another developer that had proposed building a 25-megawatt project on the same site in the late 1990s. Oahu Wind PowerPartners LLC later pulled the plug on that project.