This article is more than 1 year old

Oracle's Ellison outlines plans for Hawaiian Electriclarryland

Solar-sourced eau d'Oracle the key to island revival

When legendary Texan alt.rock ensemble Butthole Surfers recorded their (NSFW) 1996 opus Electriclarryland they almost certainly did not imagine a billionaire named Larry would one day buy a Hawaiian island and decide to revive its economy with solar-powered desalination plants and battery-powered cars.

That billionaire is, of course, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison. The island is Lanai, which Elisson all-but owns. And the electrified plans for the island were recently detailed to the Wall Street Journal.

Ellison told the Journal he wants to revive the island's economy by growing tropical fruits, which thanks to the island's climate could be exported through out the year. He also thinks Lanai could start a perfume industry and that organic wineries are a possibility. None of that's possible without fresh water, but as Lanai is small there's not much of the stuff about.

Enter solar-powered desalination plants, which Elisson reportedly thinks can increase the island's supply of fresh water by 150 per cent. His plans also call for electric car charging stations on the island, an innovation that will help to provide an alternative to the high gas/petrol prices the island faces due to its isolation.

Ellison appears to be very hands on with the various projects, telling the Journal “I'm in two modes when I'm on Lanai: In engineering mode, I'm trying to find the right place for the reservoir and the desalination plant, and looking at designs for new hotel rooms. The rest of the time, I'm in decompression mode. I'm on Hulopoe Beach, going for a swim, or on my paddleboard surrounded by 100 spinner dolphins."

The MySQL dolphin mascot, perhaps?

Ellison also told the Journal his plan is to make the island “a prosperous and sustainable Eden in the Pacific.”

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like