In 1997, PSEG Global and its partner, Harbert Power Corporation of Birmingham, Alabama, acquired the Kalaeloa cogeneration plant (Kalaeloa) in Hawaii. The plant is located 48 kilometers from downtown Honolulu, the state capital and the economic center of Hawaii, on the island of Oahu.

Kalaeloa is a 208+ megawatt combined-cycle cogeneration plant that uses low-sulfur fuel oil. The facility sells all of its electric power to the island utility, Hawaiian Electric Company, under a long-term power purchase agreement. The plant also supplies steam energy to a local refinery, Tesoro Hawaii, one of only two refineries on the island. Kalaeloa provides 90 percent of the refinery’s thermal requirements and supplies approximately 20 percent of the entire island electrical generating capacity. The plant’s output is critical for meeting the energy needs of Oahu, the third largest and chief island of Hawaii.

In addition to ensuring a reliable supply of power to the highly urbanized island of Oahu, Kalaeloa is helping to protect the environment.  Kalaeloa is pioneering the use of reclaimed water rather than drinking water, thereby conserving valuable water resources, drastically reducing waste water effluent discharged to the ocean and significantly reducing the use of chemicals.

PSEG Global has general management responsibility for the facility. Operations and maintenance is performed by a third party vendor under long-term contract to Kalaeloa.