Hawaiian Electric companies to operate under single name

If you have ever been confused by the names HECO, MECO and HELCO, your troubles will soon be over.

The electrical utilities on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii island will operate under a single name, Hawaiian Electric, starting in January.

The new name will take the place of Hawaiian Electric Co., or HECO, on Oahu; Maui Electric Co., or MECO, on Maui, Molokai and Lanai; and Hawaii Electric Light Co., or HELCO, on the Big Island.

In a Monday news release, Hawaiian Electric said that during a six-year initiative known as “One Company,” the three subsidiaries “have worked to align operations and share resources to work more efficiently and deliver greater value to customers.”

“This transformative effort has created an enterprise that is unified in its commitment to our customers and our state and we want to communicate that through one familiar and trusted name,” said Alan Oshima, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric, in the release.

Hawaiian Electric said having unified call centers and representatives that can help customers on any island will make them more efficient. There used to be separate call centers for each island.

Operating under the Hawaiian Electric name requires no changes on the part of customers, but it will likely be a relief to do away with the current nomenclature.

One confusing naming issue will remain, however. Hawaiian Electric Industries, or HEI, will continue to be the name used for the parent company of Hawaiian Electric.

There also could be some confusion about which island people are talking about when, for example, someone says, “Hawaiian Electric had a power outage.”

“The main thing for us is we want to be clear as we can on where we’re talking about,” said Jim Kelly, Hawaiian Electric’s vice president of corporate relations.

Hawaiian Electric bought Maui Electric in 1968 and Hawaii Electric Light, known then as Hilo Electric Light, in 1970.