The Cutting Edge of Air Conditioning Technology

It’s an exciting time to keep up on changes in the HVAC world, as evidenced by what’s going on in Hawaii these days. An article in Pacific Business News titled $250M Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning project could start construction in 2016 has some interesting news that we’re excited to share with you.

This project has been in process for numerous years, but construction should finally begin in the middle of 2016. They expect it to be completed in the beginning or middle of 2018, according to an executive of the project. At the moment, they’re working on closing up easements, permitting, and leases – including the discharge permits they need to get from the EPA and the Hawaii State Department of Health. They’ve already successfully cleared their state and federal environmental impact statements.

One of the biggest challenges of their project is getting customers, though an executive claims there will soon be a big announcement regarding who their newest customers are. Construction will take about two years to complete, but the project could be operation for as many as 100 years, as long as it’s maintained correctly. Interestingly, construction won’t be completed in phases but all at once.

Though they are working hard to get new customers, they already have some impressive ones, including Finance Factors, One Waterfront Towers, The Queen’s Medical Center, Hawaiian Electric Company, First Hawaiian Center, Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole Federal Building and Courthouse (which was their first governmental customer), Central Pacific Plaza, and Alakea Corporate Tower.

The goal is to decrease the consumption of electricity used for air conditioning by as much as 75% - which will provide a lowering of about 77 million kilowatt hours of power every year. That’s essentially the same as a 20-megawatt wind farm, or roughly the same amount as a 40-megawatt solar farm.

The process will work by pulling cold, deep seawater in through a pipeline. It will travel more than four miles offshore to a cooling station in Kakaako.

At AC World we’re always excited about the newest innovations in cooling and heating. Though this project is the first of its kind, and years from completion, it’s certainly one to keep an eye on. For now, you can invest in the latest ductless air conditioning systems that can reduce your energy costs and ensure you have the most efficient options available.