Walmart doubles solar power in Hawaii

Walmart and SunEdison completed three new solar power installations at Walmart stores in Hawaii that are expected to generate huge amounts of electricity.

The three stores in Kahului, Kailua-Kona and Kapolei, double the total number of stores in Hawaii powered by renewable solar energy and join existing installations that are already operational atop the Honolulu Sam’s Club and Mililani Walmart on Oahu, and the Lihue Walmart on Kauai.

During the first full year of production, the 311 kilowatt solar power rooftop system on each store will produce more than 400,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) of solar electricity. Each rooftop system will eliminate 320 metric tons of CO2e annually. That means the three systems combined, over a 10-year period will eliminate 9600 metric tons. One year of operation for each rooftop system is equivalent to removing 67 cars off the road for one year. That means the three systems combined will remove the equivalent of 2,010 cars over a 10-year period.

"We are committed to making decisions that are not only good for business and the environment, but also allow us to pass on savings to our customers," said Rey Armijo, Hawaii market manager for Walmart. "We’re excited about the expansion of our solar program in the islands and this important step towards our goal of being supplied 100% renewable energy."

"Fantastic!　 I congratulate Walmart for making this wise decision to reduce their electricity bills and do good for the environment through solar PV," said Senate Energy & Environment Committee Chair and State Senator Mike Gabbard.