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Business/In Brief • Sept. 12, 2013

HONOLULU - A nonprofit organization that advocates for renewable energy says Hawaii gets a C- for its overall progress toward energy independence.The Blue Planet Foundation's 2013 Energy Report Card being released Tuesday gives Hawaii a B for energy efficiency. The report card notes the state has done a good job reducing energy consumption per capita.Hawaii gets a B- for renewable energy, as more people have installed solar panels and several new wind farms have been built.But the state's transportation and smart grid efforts both get Ds.Blue Planet says Hawaii's average vehicle mileage ...

Song and dance at business grand opening

(First Photo) Rihanna Vega, 6, dances Sept. 1 during the grand opening of BanyanTreats at the Pioneer Inn in Lahaina. She's backed up by slack key masters Damon Parillo and Ron Heeten. The cookie-and-ice-cream shop is at the former site of Hula Cookies and Ice Cream. The business was purchased by Len Storey and Lisa Downey, who moved to Maui from South Carolina.(Second Photo) Na Hoku winner Kevin Brown and Ron Heeten perform on Front Street on Sept. 1 during the grand opening of BanyanTreats. The business is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., except Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Business/In Brief • Sept. 11, 2013

KAILUA-KONA- A nearly 50-year-old Big Island resort damaged by a tsunami in 2011 is planning to lay off its last employees with unclear prospects for reopening.The Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported Tuesday that the chief executive of Kona Village Resort informed employees last week that their last day would be Sept. 17.CEO Pat Fitzgerald told the newspaper that the lenders in charge of distributing insurance funds are unwilling to release the funds."Either way, they're going to have to replace the infrastructure," Fitzgerald said.The resort built in 1965 sustained tens of millions of ...

Board seeks pay raise for superintendent

HONOLULU - The Hawaii Board of Education will pursue a pay raise for state schools Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi.The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports board members will ask state legislators to increase the salary cap for the position.Matayoshi was hired three years ago and her annual pay is $150,000.The cap was set by lawmakers in 2001.The board gave Matayoshi a job review of "exceptional" in the second year of her three-year contract.Chairman Don Horner said in a prepared statement that Matayoshi has done an outstanding job realigning the department to achieve objectives of the ...

Tides of Commerce

Co-founders Leo Caires and Fred Brown of Maui-based Gen-X Energy have completed their first microgrid project for a more than 400-acre agriculture operation in Hawaii.A remote farming operation on the Big Island is benefiting from a commercial-scale water pumping system. It uses wind power and a grid-forming inverter, battery bank and PLC-based supervisory controls, all housed in a 20-foot container, also known as Skygrid Energy.According to an announcement, microgrid development marks a growing trend of maximizing renewable energy and load control on site. Microgrid development avoids ...

Business/In Brief • Sept. 4, 2013

HECO to close Oahu plant Jan. 31HONOLULU Hawaiian Electric Co. says it plans to deactivate its Honolulu Power Plant on Jan. 31 as it transitions to renewable energy.Vice President of Power Supply Ron Cox of Hawaiian Electric says the closure will help the company use less oil and lower electric bills.The plant has been operating since 1954. It has two generators that can deliver 113 megawatts of energy.The plant would be able to be reactivated if needed to avoid a power shortage.***Suit claims illegal, unethical actsHONOLULU - The former chief financial officer of a Honolulu tugboat ...