Hawaiian Electric: Scott Seu
SVP for public affairs
“If you’re going to operate a business here in Hawaii for 20 years or so, you will be expected by the community to become a part of it, to be able to engage on an ongoing basis.”
The States
Hawaiian Electric: Colton Ching
SVP for planning and technology
“Our electric supply plans are aggressive. They’re forward leading within the industry and there does not exist technology today at this moment in time that will meet all of our needs over the next 20 or 30 years.”
Hawaiian Electric: Alan Oshima
CEO
“Ninety-five percent of Hawaii’s electricity comes from our company.”
Visiting Hawaiian Electric
Unique Renewable Goals
Perhaps the highest of the high points of visiting Hawaiian Electric and Hawaii's Public Utilities Commission was when Commission chair Jay Griffin announced during the pre-hearing conference we attended that "the Mitnicks" of Public Utilities Fortnightly were sitting in, as welcome guests of the Commission. (One Mitnick had flown in from Washington, D.C., the other from Tokyo.) Or perhaps when we watched the moving Hawaiian blessing of the West Loch Solar Project of Hawaiian Electric and the U.S. Navy.
Michigan's Clean Energy Plan
Launching ‘MI Power Grid’
The energy industry is changing rapidly amid the transition to clean, decentralized sources of power. It's a lot to keep up with, so in October, the Michigan Public Service Commission and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer launched an initiative to help residents and businesses adapt to the changes. Called MI Power Grid, the project will serve as a centralized source of credible information and outreach.
Mississippi PSC: Public Utilities Staff
A Day at the Mississippi PSC
“The Public Utilities Staff was split away from the Commission in 1990, so we are a separate independent agency. We provide advisory and investigative services to the PSC.”
Mississippi PSC: Rickey Cotton
Director - Pipeline Safety
“I assign inspectors an area throughout the state and let them stay about two years to make sure that they don’t bond too much with the operator.”
Mississippi PSC: LaToya Earnest, Staff Officer
A Day at the Mississippi PSC
“I typically have to interact with everyone here because I’m the point of contact for entering items on the agenda for our meetings.”
Mississippi PSC: Katherine Collier
Executive Secretary
“The Public Utilities Staff serve in an advisory role to the Commission and in a consumer advocacy role in some instances. They are the subject matter experts. They have more expert and specialized Staff than the Commission.”
Mississippi PSC: Commissioner Cecil Brown
A Day at the Mississippi PSC
“One challenge is access to services for rural communities. We don’t have adequate broadband service for much of our state. We don’t have adequate gas or water service.”