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The Aug. 8 fiery destruction of Lahaina Town and the deaths of too many of its residents has had devastating effects on the community and its commercial businesses. Concurrently, the financial tsunami impacting Hawaiian Electric shareholders has resulted in catastrophic losses. Historically, HECO has been a source of reliable dividend income and share equity.
The weight of the allegations and numerous lawsuits filed against HECO has reduced its equity value to a small fraction of its previous value. Now the company plans to suspend its dividend payment, which its elderly shareholders rely upon for their financial security — a gut-wrenching development. All of these actions have occurred ahead of a comprehensive investigation to determine the root causes of the horrific fire.
The operational objectives of HECO are subject to the oversight of the state Public Utilities Commission. The PUC rejection of a proposed acquisition of the company by NextEra impaired the financial strength of the stand-alone electric utility. In hindsight, that was a bad decision.
The uncertain future of our electric company should concern all of our residents who rely on it for reliable electric energy power.
John Tamashiro
Pearl City
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