Hawaii electric vehicle rebate deadline extended

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii has more than $1 million remaining in funding for electric vehicle rebates and has extended the deadline for applying for those rebates, state officials announced Monday.

The state extended the deadline to Jan. 31 to apply for rebates on new electric or hybrid electric-gasoline cars and charges through the Hawaii Electric Vehicle Ready Program. Without an extension, September would have been the deadline.

State rebates are available of up to $4,500 on purchases of electric vehicles and up to $500 for electric vehicle chargers. Federal tax credits for electric vehicles are worth up to $7,500. Rebates are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

"We want to empower more Hawaii residents with the opportunity to contribute to Hawaii's goal of becoming more energy efficient and increase our energy security," said Estrella Seese, acting energy program administrator for the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism's Energy Office. "Our top economic priority as a state is energy independence. The extension of the rebates for electric vehicles and chargers is good news for consumers who wish to purchase them."

Since the beginning of the year, 128 state rebates have been approved for 68 electric vehicles and 60 chargers, with $1,068,988 left in federal stimulus funds. The state anticipates an increase in demand for new electric vehicles for the last quarter of this year.

State officials tout electric vehicles as twice as energy efficient as the average gasoline-powered car. On Monday, Hawaii had the most expensive gas in the nation at $4.08 per gallon of regular unleaded, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report. The price was about 63 cents higher than last year.

Hawaii is among the states designated for early release of electric vehicles produced such as the Nissan Leaf. The Aloha state's moderate climate, limited driving distances and strong tourism industry make for an ideal location for electric vehicles, the state said. Hawaii has the largest number of reservations per capita in the country for the Leaf.

The state announced in March about $2.6 million in federal stimulus money will be distributed to four private companies and two county governments to build about 250 electric vehicle-charging stations in an effort to help promote adoption of the autos.

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10 electric car charging stations open in Hawaii

Mark Niesse, Associated Press, On Tuesday April 19, 2011, 11:15 pm EDT

HONOLULU (AP) -- Ten electric vehicle charging stations opened Tuesday at a Waikiki hotel and in downtown Honolulu, forming the foundation for a charging network planned to spread throughout the Hawaiian islands.

Charging station company Better Place launched its initial Hawaii locations as a test run for another 130 stations to be made publicly available early next year.

The $1.1 million project, which gets $500,000 of its funding from the government, will initially be open for use by the Sheraton Waikiki and utility company Hawaiian Electric.

But Better Place and Hawaii's top elected leaders said it's the first step toward a larger, publicly available system linking the electric grid to public stations for vehicles like the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf.

"These two projects are key milestones in opening to the public access to clean and renewable alternatives to $4.55 per gallon gasoline, and they're also the start of our journey toward complete oil independence," said Jason Wolf, vice president for Better Place North America.

Hawaii gas prices were the highest in the nation Tuesday at an average of $4.49 per gallon of regular unleaded, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Report.

Federal funding for the charging station project came from an earmark approved in 2009 before Congress swore of the practice this year. The money flowed from the U.S. Department of Energy and the Hawaii Renewable Energy Development Venture. Private funding came from Better Place, Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts and Hawaiian Electric.

"Today the people of Hawaii are required to live in a lifestyle formula that goes something like this: Arab crisis equals oil crisis equals $4.55 a gallon," said Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, a defender of earmarks. "Today we will take the first step to change that policy so that we can be driving around at something like a dollar a gallon."

Besides the charging stations, the project also pays for seven electric cars -- two for Kyo-ya and five for Hawaiian Electric. These cars will test the charging stations before their broader rollout.

"This represents a better place for us to be than we were before the installation of this capacity today," said Democratic Gov. Neil Abercrombie.

There are currently only a handful of publicly available charging stations and around two dozen highway-capable electric vehicles on the state's roads. Most electric vehicle owners install personal charging stations in their homes.

The number of electric vehicles in the state is expected to jump into the hundreds over the next few months as more arrive in auto dealerships.

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State of Hawaii Selects AeroVironment to Deploy up to 320 Public Electric Vehicle Charging Docks in Support of Clean ...

Think About! - Electric Vehicles - Solution or Diversion?

HONOLULU March 18, 2011; Lt. Governor Brian Schatz today announced that AeroVironment has been selected to help lead the way to a cleaner transportation future through an $820,000 contract from the Hawaii EV Ready Grants Program. The contract will fund the deployment of up to 320 AeroVironment 240-volt electric vehicle (EV) charging docks throughout the islands. Once deployment is completed, Hawaii will have one of the nation's first statewide public charging networks supporting electric vehicle drivers.

AeroVironment (AV), the official home charging-dock provider for the Nissan LEAFR and co-developer of the first modern-day electric vehicle, the GM Impact, will partner with Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) to design and build public and semi-private charging stations at convenient locations for electric vehicle owners, including high-rise buildings, resorts and rental car facilities.

AeroVironment's charging docks, including the two-port or four-port EVSE-RS+ and EVSE-CS (commercial) dock, will be strategically located throughout Oahu, Hawaii Island, Maui, and Kauai to offer drivers a practical, safe and reliable EV charging experience. AeroVironment has installed more than 1,000 charging docks in more than 300 communities across 18 states since November 2010.

The State of Hawaii is offering a rebate of up to $500 for installing charging docks through its Hawaii EV Ready Rebate Program. Customers who purchase an EV are also eligible for a state rebate of up to $4,500. In combination with the Hawaii EV Ready Grant Program and other development efforts, the rebates aim to establish the state as a leader in the clean transportation movement.

"We look forward to working with AeroVironment to help reduce the use of oil for transportation," said Robbie Alm, Hawaiian Electric executive vice president. "Wide use of electric vehicles will not only help reduce our fossil fuel dependence, it will make it easier to increase our use of renewable energy sources such as wind power and others, all contributing to our energy, economic and environmental security."

Alm added, "AeroVironment shares this vision and is an outstanding example of a supplier with a comprehensive solution for the EV market, a history in Hawaii, experience working with leading auto manufacturers and consistent high quality customer support."

The Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (HNEI), University of Hawaii at Manoa will work with AeroVironment and Hawaiian Electric to collect data from chargers to analyze the impact of EVs and associated infrastructure on the power distribution grid.

"AeroVironment's team focuses on the entire user experience from the start by providing the right tools and a full range of practical, groundbreaking solutions," said Richard Rocheleau, director of the HNEI. "As a result, we'll have the unique ability to collect and analyze usage patterns that will help us project the increased demand on Hawaii's utilities as EV adoption accelerates."

AeroVironment has been working on clean transportation programs in Hawaii for more than a decade, beginning with deployment of fast charging stations for passenger EVs in the early 2000s. AeroVironment also established world altitude records with its solar-electric, unmanned aircraft systems at the U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands on Kauai.

"AeroVironment and the state of Hawaii are pioneers in the EV movement and have a long partnership focused on introducing clean transportation solutions," said Mike Bissonette, senior vice president of Efficient Energy Systems for AeroVironment. "Together, we're deploying practical solutions for a game-changing electric transportation ecosystem that will dramatically alter the vehicle refueling paradigm for drivers in Hawaii, the United States and the world."

About AeroVironment, Inc.

AV is a technology solutions provider that designs, develops, produces and supports an advanced portfolio of electric transportation solutions and electric-powered Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). AV's comprehensive EV charging solutions include EV home charging, public charging, fast charging, data collection, grid-integrated communications and complete installation, training and support services for consumers, automakers, utilities, government agencies and businesses. AV's industrial fast charging systems support thousands of electric materials handling vehicles in mission-critical supply chains for Fortune 500 enterprises. AV's power cycling and test systems provide EV developers and EV battery manufacturers with market-leading simulation and cycling capabilities. Agencies of the U.S. Department of Defense and allied military services use the company's battery-powered, hand-launched unmanned aircraft systems to provide situational awareness to tactical operating units through real-time, airborne reconnaissance, surveillance and communication. More information is available at www.avinc.com.

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Hawaii to build electric car charging stations

Posted: Saturday, March 19th, 2011 7:49 AM HST Hawaii to build electric car charging stations HONOLULU (AP) ? About 250 electric vehicle charging stations are being built across Hawaii to provide a power boost to the short-range vehicles.

Private companies and government agencies announced Friday they'll use $2.6 million in federal stimulus money to build the stations, which are a few feet high and plug into electric vehicles like the Nissan Leaf or the Chevy Volt.

The grant recipients pitched in $2 million in matching funds to receive the money.

While there are only about 18 commercial electric cars on Hawaii's roads so far, those numbers are expected to jump into the hundreds over the next few months.

Building the charging stations creates an incentive for Hawaii residents to buy electric cars and feel comfortable they won't get stranded if their vehicles run out of fuel.

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