Hawaiian Electric wants to turn the lights back on at Waiau Power Plant, so to speak, by replacing its six old fossil-fueled boilers with what the utility terms six smaller “fuel-flexible combustion turbines.” It’s planning a community meeting Jan. 16 in Pearl City to discuss it.

The change would be a long way off, the first turbines going live in 2029, but the utility still has to persuade the community to accept them, even if they are smaller and more efficient as promised. The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. at Waiau Elementary School, and will be streamed online (facebook.com/HawaiianElectric).