Dive Brief:
- Richard M. Rosenblum, CEO and president of the Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO), has announced that he plans to retire from his position within the next 12 months after six years on the job.
- Rosenblum plans to help transition the Hawaii's largest utility to a new CEO, as well as remain involved in the utility's progress towards furthering clean energy in the state, he said.
- Since becoming CEO in 2008, the amount of renewable energy resources used by the utility has risen from 8% of total generation to 18%.
Dive Insight:
The announcement comes not long after the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission (PUC) directed the utility to rethink its strategic direction for the future, after the company's Integrated Resource Plan failed to meet the PUC's standards.
Of all the utilities having to reconsider their business models and move as fast as possible towards clean and renewable energy, HECO is in a particularly good place, Rosenblum observed. "We lead the nation in rooftop solar photovoltaic systems per customer, and we're broadly recognized as an industry leader in the integration of renewable energy," he said.
