Hawaiian Electric named ‘Utility of the Year’ by Utility Dive
Publication cites company ‘advancing across range of issues’
Release Date: 12/9/2019
HONOLULU, Dec. 9, 2019 – Hawaiian Electric Company has been named “Utility of the Year” by Utility Dive, a leading energy industry publication.
The 2019 Dive Awards recognize the industry’s top disruptors and innovators, including executives, companies, trends and breakthroughs transforming the industry. Winners were chosen by the editors of Utility Dive based on independent research, reporting and analysis, according to the Washington, D.C.-based online publication.
“The people and organizations that win the Dive Awards are trailblazers and leaders in their markets,” said Davide Savenije, editor-in-chief of Utility Dive's publisher, Industry Dive. “Their achievements in 2019 are shaping the future of where the latest strategies and trends are going.”
“It’s wonderful to be recognized for Hawaii’s incredible leadership by a respected, independent follower of our industry,” said Alan Oshima, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric and its subsidiaries, Maui Electric and Hawaii Electric Light. “We appreciate the recognition on behalf of all of our employees and Hawaii’s energy community.”
In its coverage of the award, Utility Dive wrote: “Hawaiian Electric is advancing across a range of issues transforming the power sector, from renewables to electric vehicles to new business models. Among U.S. utilities today, ‘Hawaiian Electric stands out; they're beyond the bleeding edge,’ Patty Cook, senior vice president with ICF's commercial energy practice, told Utility Dive this fall.”
Previous Utility Dive awardees include industry leaders Southern California Edison; Xcel Energy, which serves 3.3 million customers in Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico; and Berkshire Hathaway Energy, which owns utilities across seven Western states.
Among Hawaiian Electric’s achievements this year:
- Expecting to end 2019 with a consolidated renewable portfolio standard of 28 percent, on the way to 100 percent clean energy by 2045 or earlier. The companies expect to be close to 50 percent by 2022, assuming all planned projects come online as scheduled.
- Undertaking the state’s largest renewable energy acquisition effort ever, with plans to add the equivalent of nearly 1,200 solar megawatts of grid-scale generation, storage and grid services in the next five years.
- Integrating about 80,000 private rooftop solar systems, 19 percent of residential customers. It is by far the highest percentage of any U.S. utility. The companies’ plans call for tripling that level of customer-sited solar by 2045.
The Utility Dive announcement is available at: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/utility-dive-awards-2019/567259/
About Utility Dive
Utility Dive provides in-depth journalism and insight into the most impactful news and trends shaping the electric power sector. The daily email newsletter and website cover topics such as smart grid, energy efficiency, regulation and policy, grid security, distributed generation, storage, renewables, and more. Utility Dive is a leading industry publication operated by Industry Dive. Our business journalists spark ideas and shape agendas for 7+ million decision makers in the most competitive industries.
