Hawaiian Electric's $170 million rate request would add about $11 to $15 a month for a typical home. Here's what's behind it, when it would hit, and how solar and a battery keep more of your bill in your own hands.
If your electric bill already makes you wince, here's news worth paying attention to. Hawaiian Electric has asked the state Public Utilities Commission to raise its base rates starting January 1, 2027. If approved, a typical household would pay about $11 more a month on O'ahu, $14 more on Maui, and $15 more on Hawai'i Island, on top of what are already the highest electricity prices in the country.
Public hearings have been running across the islands since September 22, and O'ahu's turn is Friday, October 2. Here's what HECO is actually asking for, why your bill moves for reasons that have nothing to do with this request, and what you can do about it, whether or not you ever go solar.
The request is called a "rebasing." Under the performance-based framework the PUC adopted in 2021, HECO's base rates are reset only once every five years, and the last reset was in 2021. This time the utility wants to increase annual revenue by about $170 million, or 5.3%, phased in two steps: $125 million starting January 1, 2027 and another $45 million starting January 1, 2028.
HECO says the money covers costs largely outside its control since 2021: inflation, much higher insurance premiums, and faster depreciation of oil-fired power plants that are being retired earlier than planned. The company says the request is not tied to its Maui wildfire settlement or its wildfire-prevention spending. If approved, the new base rates would be locked in until 2032, with an inflation adjustment each year from 2027 through 2031.
The PUC hasn't decided anything yet. After the public hearings, the Consumer Advocate and other parties will argue the case before the three-member commission, which can approve the request, reduce it, or reject it.
Here's the part many homeowners miss: base rates are only part of what you pay. According to Hawaiian Electric, the cost of the imported fuel used to make electricity accounts for roughly 50% of a typical bill, and that cost is passed straight through to customers as a separate line item. When oil prices jump, your bill jumps, no PUC hearing required. That's exactly what happened this year, when bills rose even for families who used less power.
In 2025, the average residential customer paid about 40.5¢ per kWh on O'ahu, 41.6¢ on Maui, and 45.8¢ on Hawai'i Island, according to HECO's own figures. At a typical 500 kWh a month, that's around $200 a month on O'ahu before this new request adds a dollar. The proposed increase is real money, but it's the long-run combination of base-rate resets and fuel swings that makes island electricity so expensive.
Every kilowatt-hour your roof produces and your home uses is one you don't buy from Hawaiian Electric, at either the base rate or the fuel charge. That's why solar in Hawai'i has always penciled out faster than on the mainland: you're replacing some of the most expensive electricity in the nation.
Today the battery matters as much as the panels. With so many O'ahu and Maui rooftops already exporting at midday, the real savings come from storing your own solar and using it in the evening, when your family is home and the sun is down. Hawaiian Electric's Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Plus program rewards exactly that:
Because those export credits are tied to your retail rate, they rise when rates rise. In plain terms, a well-sized solar and battery system turns a future rate increase from a cost you absorb into one you're largely sheltered from.
There's a second January 1 deadline that lines up with the proposed rate increase. Hawai'i's 35% state solar tax credit (up to $5,000) is fully protected for systems placed in service during 2026, thanks to Governor Green's Executive Order 26-02. Starting in 2027, Act 24 puts the credit under a $40 million statewide annual cap, so later installs compete for a limited pool. The federal 30% residential credit already ended on December 31, 2025.
We'll be straight with you: "placed in service" means installed, inspected, and connected, not just signed. Hawai'i projects typically take two to four months from contract to permission to operate. An October start can still land inside 2026 for many straightforward homes, but it isn't guaranteed, and anyone who promises otherwise is guessing. Either way, starting now puts you near the front of the line for 2027.
If you have an opinion on HECO's request, the PUC wants to hear it. O'ahu's public hearing is Friday, October 2 at 6 p.m. at the PUC Hearing Room, 465 S. King St., Room 103 in Honolulu, with an online option via WebEx. Written comments can be submitted anytime at puc.hawaii.gov under Docket No. 2026-0162. (The Hilo hearing was postponed after Hurricane Nolo and will be rescheduled.)
Then take a look at your own numbers. A few minutes with your last 12 months of HECO bills will tell you how much of your usage happens after dark, how big a system your roof can carry, and whether a battery-first design makes sense for your home. We've helped families on O'ahu and Maui do exactly that since 2007, through every rate change and rule change along the way.
Solar plus battery systems sized to your evening usage, BYOD Plus incentives, and the full 35% state credit for 2026 installs. Local and family-owned since 2007.
