The Honolulu Star-Advertiser featured BURROW, Oceanit’ new technology that promises standardize cost-efficient underground power lines in a world where we face more and more climate change induced extreme weather events, such as the 2023 Lahaina fire. Reporter Andrew Gomes highlighted how a Hawaii-owned business is working on a national level to develop a solution for aging overhead power grids across the country.
The process of “undergrounding” is not new, but it is slow and expensive. BURROW is a horizontal tunnel drilling guidance system that uses AI and unmanned aerial drones to sense and avoid obstacles underground. With BURROW, undergrounding costs can be reduced by 50%, and on a large scale, it holds the potential to be as cheap as installing and maintaining new overhead powerlines.
With the potential to significantly reduce costs, BURROW could be a game-changer for power providers like Hawaiian Electric Co or California’s PG&E. Currently, the majority of electricity is provided through overhead lines, which are vulnerable to high winds and have been blamed for the fires in Lahaina and California’s Camp Fire. However, with the introduction of BURROW, it could become financially feasible to increase the percentage of power lines built underground, potentially transforming the energy landscape of the state.
Read more on BURROW and the national move towards undergrounding power lines on Honolulu Star-Advertiser: https://www.staradvertiser.com/2024/06/24/hawaii-news/isle-firm-aims-to-cut-cost-of-laying-power-lines-underground/
BURROW was also featured in Hawaii Tribune-Herald, and The Garden Island.
Learn more about our technology through our press release and our project page.
