Where Hawaii Gets Its Electricity
Net generation by source · 12-month average, September 2025 – August 2026.
Generation mix
| Source | Share | Generation |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 0.0% | 0 GWh |
| Coal | 0.0% | 0 GWh |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0 GWh |
| Wind | 5.6% | 535 GWh |
| Solar | 9.9% | 936 GWh |
| Hydro | 0.1% | 13 GWh |
| Other | 84.4% | 8,016 GWh |
9.5 TWh generated over the 12 months to August 2026. Shares are of net generation within Hawaii, which is not the same as what the state consumes — power crosses state lines.
Counting rooftop solar
EIA reports small-scale solar — mostly rooftop panels on homes and businesses — separately, and leaves it out of the state generation total that the mix above is a share of. Hawaii generated 1,719 GWh that way. Counting it on both sides of the ratio takes solar from 9.9% to 23.7%.
How the mix has shifted since 2001
| Source | 2001 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| Coal | 15.1% | 0.0% | −15.1 pts |
| Nuclear | 0.0% | 0.0% | — |
| Wind | 0.0% | 6.1% | +6.1 pts |
| Solar | 0.0% | 10.3% | +10.3 pts |
| Hydro | 0.9% | 0.3% | −0.7 pts |
| Other | 83.9% | 83.3% | −0.6 pts |
Compared with the U.S.
| Where | Renewable | Carbon-free | Largest source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 20.0% | 20.0% | Other 84.4% |
| U.S. average | 25.4% | 43.0% | Natural gas 40.9% |
Hawaii's generation mix in context
Other sources supplied 84.4% of Hawaii's electricity generation in the twelve months through August 2026, making them by far the largest source. Wind accounted for 5.6% and solar for 9.9% on a utility-scale basis, though when rooftop solar is included the solar share rises to 23.7%. Renewable generation overall reached 20%, placing Hawaii 26th of the 50 states and DC. Carbon-free generation was also 20%, well below the national average of 43%, because Hawaii has no nuclear generation and its fossil fuels make up 76% of the mix.
Since 2001, renewable generation has grown from 5.6% to 21.4% in 2025, a gain of 15.8 percentage points driven by wind and solar rising from nothing to 6.1% and 10.3% respectively. Coal generation fell from 15.1% to zero over the same span. Hydro ticked down slightly, from 0.9% to 0.3%, while other sources held relatively steady at 83.9% in 2001 and 83.3% in 2025. Compared with the nation as a whole, Hawaii generates far less from natural gas—which supplies 40.9% nationally but 0% in the state—and has no coal generation against the national share of 15.4%. On solar, Hawaii ranks 13th of the 50 states and DC, substantially above the national share of 7.6%.
Written from the EIA figures on this page, covering data through August 2026.
Frequently asked questions
›What percentage of Hawaii's electricity comes from renewable energy?
›What percentage of Hawaii's power comes from solar?
›Where does Hawaii get most of its electricity?
›Does Hawaii still burn coal for electricity?
›Is Hawaii getting greener?
How this is measured
Figures are net generation reported to the U.S. Energy Information Administration for all sectors — utilities, independent power producers, and industrial and commercial plants that generate their own power. Shares are of the 12 months to August 2026, rather than a single month, because generation is strongly seasonal: solar peaks in summer and hydro with the spring melt, so one month says more about the weather than about the grid.
“Other” is the reported total minus the six named sources, so the shares add to exactly 100%. It holds geothermal, biomass, petroleum, other gases, and pumped storage — the last of which consumes more electricity than it returns, and so can be negative. Geothermal and biomass are renewable, which is why the renewable share above is slightly larger than wind, solar and hydro added together.
This is generation, not consumption. Electricity crosses state lines freely, so a state can generate more than it uses or rely on imports for a large part of its supply; neither shows up here.