Not a day goes by without someone saying that Hawai'i must wean itself off its near-total dependence on oil and fossil fuel for its energy needs.

On Ford Island, a joint project between the Navy and a civilian company, PowerLight Solar Electric Systems of California, is doing just that.

A $2.5 million photovoltaic array, installed on a World War II-era hangar at Ford Island, was dedicated last week. It is expected to produce 309 kilowatts of electricity for Navy homes in the region.

This is an exciting step toward greater energy independence for Hawai'i, and should be seen as a prototype of what the future holds.

In this case, the economics depend on the deep pockets of the military. For its $2.5 million, the Navy expects to save $40,000 a year. In practical terms it will take a long time to recoup that $2.5 million. And in the real dollars-and-sense civilian world, managers would have to carefully consider whether they would be better off financially by investing that $2.5 million in other ways.

Still, the point here is to demonstrate that this kind of alternative energy works — and works well. And the more such alternatives are used, the cheaper they will become. This project puts us on precisely the right path.