Kona Brewing Company goes Solar

Hawaii’s Kona Brewing Company is tapping the power of solar energy to let their customers tap into its beer. They’re installing a solar-plus-storage installation with that cranks out almost 7,000 cans of ‘Liquid Aloha’ per hour.

Signing Contract

The installation is funded by energy companies with Kona Brewing Company signing a 20-year power purchase agreement. This pledges their commitment in purchasing all of power created by the solar-plus-storage system at the new KBC brewery that’s under construction in Kailua-Kona.

The solar plus storage installation brings versatility and scalability that’s great for this building. The savings and revenue streams from this equipment can potential reduce the payback period. “Since it formed over 20 years ago, Kona Brewing has been committed to making locally brewed beers in an environmentally responsible way,” said Julia Person, sustainability manager of Kona Brewing.

“By partnering with Holu, we are working alongside another Hawaiian business to decrease our imported fossil fuel use and create on-site solar energy that helps the state meet its renewable energy goals. This partnership demonstrates how we embrace innovation to maintain our commitment to the ‘Aloha spirit’ and the larger Hawaiian community.”

In addition, this provides their customers an inspiring perspective of renewable energy. The new installation pairs 336 kilowatts of roof-mounted photovoltaic (PV) panels and an EnSync DER SuperModule that includes a 122 kilowatt-hour energy storage system to store power at night.

A Matrix™ Energy Management system applies its DER FlexTM ‘Internet of Energy’ technology to continue to keep solar energy flowing to the brewery for the lowest cost. Power could be used directly from the solar panels, storage or from the network. This solely depends on what the most cost effective choice is at the time.

Perks and Benefits ​​​​
With a large rooftop solar system, it only meets around 25% of the brewery’s renewable energy electricity needs. “This installation offers Kona Brewing a fully integrated reneweable energy resource to meet its dual goals of using clean energy and reducing energy costs, which in Hawaii are the highest in the nation,” said Ted Peck, president of Holu Energy.

“Integrating energy storage with PV will help the brewery reduce expensive peak demand charges, add resiliency and provide grid services, which benefits both the local utility and Kona Brewing.” These hybrid solar-plus-storage intelligent controllers allow customers to interact in the increasing demand response programs that permit utility customers to gain more revenue by reducing signals from the network.

Kona Brewing Company can now gain renewable energy from its stationary energy storage instead of the network. The new brewery is being built and will be open in early 2019. Move into the future with solar with the help of HahaSmart., Try our price checker tool and see how economical solar really is.

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