We have learned the hard way that we must take control of our energy future in Hawaiʻi.

I remember 2008 when oil hit $147 per barrel and electricity became so expensive that some local businesses shut their doors because they could not afford to keep the lights on. The Great Recession followed, and we struggled for answers while being dragged into the global economic downturn.

In response, Gov. Linda Lingle launched the Hawaiʻi Clean Energy Initiative to unite government and private sectors in reducing fossil fuel dependence. Our journey brought numerous small successes and a few big failures.

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Solar PV, dismissed by some utility experts as an unscalable and subsidy-dependent, became a primary source of affordable energy as global prices plummeted. LED lighting transitioned from a debated novelty to a ubiquitous, cost-saving standard.

While newer innovations like electric vehicles and lithium batteries continue to build momentum, top-down failures like the “Big Wind” project tell a different story. That proposal, which required huge wind turbines to blanket Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi and connect to Oʻahu by undersea cable, ultimately collapsed under the weight of fierce local opposition and spiraling expenses.

Today, we face a similar crossroads. High inflation and federal policy shifts have slowed utility solar, and we don’t have all the answers to achieve our long term clean energy goals. Because of this uncertainty, the state is now exploring a shift from oil to methane gas. This fossil fuel is fracked across the U.S. and Canada using large amounts of fresh water combined with sand and chemicals to force it to the surface.

The gas is piped to export facilities and chilled to minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit until it liquefies — becoming liquefied natural gas — before being barged around the world.

Before going on, I want to acknowledge the intent of the governor’s proposal: our families are hurting. And while other states have higher energy bills, Hawaiʻi residents pay the highest electricity rates in the nation. For a household choosing between groceries and a utility bill, any promise of lower costs feels like a lifeline.

The governor’s desire to bring immediate relief to struggling families is understandable and compassionate. The problem is simple: there will be no immediate relief by importing LNG, and there may be no relief at all. The proposal is a multi-billion dollar infrastructure investment to enable Hawaiʻi to ship LNG across the Pacific and pipe it to rebuilt HECO generators. LNG is seeing massive growth in demand as it displaces oil and coal use.

The Hawaiʻi State Energy Office’s thesis seems to be that our current problem is not our dependence on outside fossil fuels per se, but the specific type of fossil fuel we depend on. They forecast that LNG will remain cheap and will help end our dependence on foreign oil from unstable regions.

The problem is that this infrastructure will take at least seven years to build, occurring while similar infrastructure is built out in far more populous areas around the world. By the time we turn on the tap, we’ll be locked in for the next 30 years, and it is almost impossible to accurately predict the price.

Again we’ll be helplessly tied to global market volatility, and the most painful part? We will be billions in debt and unable to invest in cleaner, more efficient, and innovative options that are rapidly emerging today.

Gov. Green has been a champion for Hawaiʻi, and his heartfelt commitment is not in question. From his leadership during Covid to his recent efforts to help our houseless neighbors, he has continued to show thoughtfulness and compassion.

The real question for Hawaiʻi is not whether LNG is the right path, but whether we are finally ready to choose a different path. Yes, let’s take a hard, honest look at this proposal. Let’s ask whether it will truly help our families and businesses. Some questions we may wish to ask along the way include:

• Global Commodity Markets: The natural gas boom isn’t just an exclusive “deal” from JERA; it is a massive global energy shift. Skyrocketing demand has left manufacturers like General Electric with years-long backlogs for generators, even as prices and production rise. Does the fact that methane is cheaper than oil today mean it will stay that way tomorrow?
• Resource Extraction: The traditional fossil fuel business model is built on a ‘deplete and move on’ strategy. This isn’t a reflection on the people in the industry, but on an inhuman corporate structure built for rapid extraction with zero consideration for ʻāina and wai. When we sign onto these decades-long contracts, we aren’t just buying fuel; we are tethering ourselves to an extractive economic system that is fundamentally incompatible with a sustainable future for Hawaiʻi.
• Economic Diversity: For decades, we’ve sought alternatives to our tourism-dependent economy. Clean energy innovation offers a path toward lower bills and living-wage local jobs while ending fossil fuel reliance. Why would we abandon this homegrown progress and lock into decades of extractive dependence when LNG offers no more certainty than our current path?
• Power and Exploitation: The current administration in Washington, D.C., has implemented a policy they apply broadly: “We have more power than you, so shut up and do what we want or we’ll run you over”. This is playing out in Venezuela, Greenland, and even in Minnesota. If we choose to invest in LNG, are we not joining this policy of “American Energy Dominance” that is tainting the reputation of the US globally?

While consultants may project that LNG will be cheaper, they won’t be here when supply shocks send prices soaring or help our families choose between power and groceries. Their business model relies on the very cycles of dependence we’ve fought to end. This proposal takes us in the wrong direction, ceding our responsibility and locking in the same powerlessness that has plagued us for decades.

Unwinding our deep fossil fuel reliance is a complex, multi-stage journey, which is precisely why we must maintain our direction. Even within the industry, leaders like Par Hawaiʻi are pursuing local biofuels to break this cycle.

Hawaiʻi is ready to choose innovation; we only need the courage to move forward. By showing Gov. Green we are ready for a better path, we can move toward a truly independent energy future together.