NextEra Energy Inc. Chief Financial Officer Moray Dewhurst said Wednesday he did not refer to Hawaiian Electric Industries as a “snack” to be consumed on the way to buying other regulated utilities.
Dewhurst was responding to questions about a Nov. 24, 2014, email from HEI CEO Connie Lau.
“Moray Dewhurst joined us for dinner and made it clear that we are the snack … on the way to their desired buffet luncheon to acquire other regulated utilities,” Lau said in the email.
“Those were not my words,” Dewhurst said Wednesday at a state Public Utilities Commission hearing into Florida-based NextEra’s plan to buy HEI for $4.3 billion. The deal needs the approval of the PUC to move ahead.
The initial 12 days of PUC hearings ended Wednesday at Neal S. Blaisdell Center.
PUC Chairman Randy Iwase said the hearings will continue Feb.1 though Feb. 10 at the same location. He also said he may schedule hearings in January but hasn’t found a venue for that month.
NextEra Energy Hawaii President Eric Gleason and Hawaiian Electric Co. CEO Alan Oshima were two of the 12 expert witnesses who testified on behalf of NextEra at the hearings.
Iwase questioned Dewhurst about NextEra’s commitments to employees, which include no involuntary layoffs for two years after the sale closes, but do not include a promise to keep the current level of retiree benefits.
Iwase spoke of NextEra’s three core values of excellence, doing the right thing, and treating people with respect.
“Excluding retirees, excluding kupunas from protection from commitments, is that doing the right thing?” Iwase said.
Dewhurst said that it does not mean things will change radically because there is not a commitment.
Dewhurst listed some initiatives NextEra is looking to offer if the buyout is approved. They include bringing more liquefied natural gas to the state, smart-grid infrastructure, large-scale renewables, an interisland power cable and distributed resources, including batteries.
“All of those elements are essential elements,” he said.
