EV Charging Help
Utility programUpdated October 2026

Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc.

Hawaii Electric Light Company serves about 89,923 customers on Hawaii Island (the Big Island) and is one of the three Hawaiian Electric operating companies that share EV program design under Hawaii PUC oversight. It has no residential EV time-of-use rate open for enrollment; its earlier residential time-of-use options closed to new customers (Schedule TOU-RI on October 31, 2022, and the Shift and Save pilot on February 1, 2025). Its EV programs center on commercial time-of-use rates (Schedules EV-J and EV-P) paired with the Charge Up Commercial make-ready program, plus the Smart Charge Hawaii managed-charging app.

At a glance

Investor-owned
Serves
Hawaii
Customers
89,923
EV rate plan
Yes
EVSE rebate
–
Managed-charging program
Yes

EV time-of-use rate plans

Schedule EV-J (Commercial EV time-of-use, medium customers)

Verified Oct 2026

Peak
On-Peak 5pm-10pm daily (18.5639 cents/kWh); the tariff's separate Off-Peak period, 10pm-9am daily, bills at this same rate, not a discount
Varies
Off-peak
Mid-Day 9am-5pm daily is the only reduced-rate period, at 7.2955 cents/kWh; overnight hours (10pm-9am) are billed at the On-Peak rate
Varies

Qualifying medium-sized commercial customers on Hawaii Island, including businesses, workplaces, and multi-unit dwellings, that put EV charging on a dedicated meter. Offered as a pilot extended by the Hawaii PUC through June 30, 2027 (the filed tariff sheet itself reads available through March 17, 2027, with a cap of 1,000 meters across all Hawaiian Electric service areas).

Schedule EV-P (Commercial EV time-of-use, large customers)

Verified Oct 2026

Peak
On-Peak 5pm-10pm daily (15.0768 cents/kWh); the tariff's separate Off-Peak period, 10pm-9am daily, bills at this same rate, not a discount
Varies
Off-peak
Mid-Day 9am-5pm daily is the only reduced-rate period, at 5.1216 cents/kWh; overnight hours (10pm-9am) are billed at the On-Peak rate
Varies

Qualifying large commercial customers on Hawaii Island placing EV charging on a dedicated meter. Offered as a pilot extended by the Hawaii PUC through June 30, 2027 (the filed tariff sheet itself reads available through March 17, 2027, with a cap of 500 meters across all Hawaiian Electric service areas).

Commercial & multifamily rebates

Charge Up Commercial

Covers make-ready installation costs; Hawaiian Electric pays for and installs the electrical infrastructure (transformers, conduit, electric panels) up to the customer-purchased charging equipment

Non-residential Hawaii Electric Light customers that own or lease the Hawaii Island site where they will install Level 2 EV charging, taking service on Schedule EV-J or EV-P on a dedicated meter. Pilot also serves Oahu and Maui County. Closed to new applications; questions go to Chargeup@hawaiianelectric.com (confirmed closed as of October 16, 2026).

Apply / learn more →

Managed-charging programs

Smart Charge Hawaii

A managed-charging pilot formerly run by the Hawaiian Electric companies with ev.energy that let residential EV drivers on Hawaii Island automate and track home charging through a mobile app, including low-carbon charging for rooftop solar owners. The official program has ended; enrollment incentives were available only to participants who enrolled their EV by November 30, 2024. The free ev.energy app remains available for ongoing smart charging.

Enrollment incentive (closed Nov 30, 2024) was a choice of $150 cash or 10,000 HawaiianMiles; the free ev.energy app now offers a $5 Amazon gift card after the first 5 smart charges per the app's rewards page (its FAQ instead says 30 reward points, earned at 1 point per smart charge of at least 7 kWh, buy a $5 card), then $10 cards for every 30 smart charges; points expire after 12 months without redemption

Hawaii Electric Light does not offer a residential EV-specific time-of-use rate open to new customers on Hawaii Island. Its general residential time-of-use options are closed: Schedule TOU-RI closed to new customers on October 31, 2022, and the Shift and Save time-of-use pilot closed to new enrollment on February 1, 2025. Residential EV owners therefore charge on their standard residential rate, which does not vary by time of day. Households with rooftop solar can lower their charging cost by charging during daylight hours and using their own generation rather than buying from the grid.

There is no Hawaii Electric Light rebate for a home charger, so residential customers have no rebate to stack against a rate. On the commercial side, the picture is different: the Charge Up Commercial make-ready program pays for and installs the electrical infrastructure up to the charging equipment at eligible non-residential sites on Hawaii Island, Oahu, and in Maui County, and the equipment takes service on the commercial EV time-of-use Schedules EV-J or EV-P. Charge Up Commercial is closed to new applications as of October 16, 2026. Those EV time-of-use rates reward mid-day charging over the evening peak; overnight hours bill at the same rate as the evening peak, not a discount.

Hawaii Island sits on its own islanded grid with no connection to the other islands or the mainland, so charging load is balanced against locally generated solar, geothermal, and fossil generation. The EV-J and EV-P tariff pilot was extended by the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission through June 30, 2027, and the company was required to file a successor tariff application by June 30, 2026, after which the rate design may change. The Hawaiian Electric companies share program design, but enrollment and metering are handled by Hawaii Electric Light for Hawaii Island.

Service territory

Hawaii

  • Hawaii

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