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CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / MAY 26
Gov. David Ige
Gov. David Ige said Monday he is opposed to Hawaiian Electric Co. using liquefied natural gas as an energy source.
As the opening speaker at the first day of the Asia Pacific Resilience Innovation Summits & Expo., Ige said he was against the use of LNG because it distracted from investment in renewable energy resources.
“Any time and money spent on LNG is time and money not not spent on renewable energy,” Ige said. In June, Ige enacted a law setting a goal for the state to get to 100 percent renewable energy by 2045.
Ige said his administration will actively oppose the construction of any future LNG receiving stations in Hawaii because it would cost too much money.
“LNG will no longer save us money,” Ige said. “The capital plans of those wishing to import LNG are anything but small. LNG is a fossil fuel. LNG is imported.”
HECO’s power supply improvement plan filed in August 2014 included LNG as a bridge fuel that would be used to transition HECO’s use of imported oil to renewable energy resources.
Ige said that he is not opposed to the state’s gas utility, Hawaii Gas, using LNG.
