BUSINESS BRIEFS
Hawaiian Air tops travel list
Advertiser Staff
Hawaiian Airlines was ranked as the top airline serving Hawai'i by Travel & Leisure magazine for the ninth consecutive year.
"Our employees have earned Hawaiian this award by giving customers the kind of uniquely refreshing in-flight experience one would expect when flying Hawai'i's flagship carrier," said Mark Dunkerley, Hawaiian's president and chief executive officer.
Earlier this year, Travel & Leisure readers rated Hawaiian the nation's third-best airline based on cabin comfort, food, in-flight service, customer service and value.
HOKU SCIENTIFIC SHARES UP 15.8%
Shares of Hoku Scientific Inc., a Kapolei-based company that is building a polysilicon production facility in Idaho, soared 15.8 percent yesterday to close at $9.46 yesterday in Nasdaq trading.
The $1.29 gain came as the Dow Jones Industrials Average rose more than 150 points.
Hoku shares regained some of the territory lost over the past month. On July 13, the stock closed at a 52-week high of $14.05.
Hoku is building a plant on a 67-acre site in Pocatello capable of producing 2,000 metric tons of polysilicon per year.
Hoku said it expects to finish construction in the second half of 2008, with polysilicon shipments planned for the first half of 2009.
TRITON GETS $6.1M CONTRACT
Triton Marine Construction Corp. of Bremerton, Wash., has received a $6.1 million contract to replace underground train tracks and a drainage system at the Fleet and Industrial Supply Center at Pearl Harbor.
The tracks connect the supply center with underground fuel tanks at Red Hill. Work is expected to be completed by June 2009.
The Naval Facilities Engineering Command at Pearl Harbor awarded the contract.
KAUA'I CANE BURN VIOLATED PERMIT
The state Department of Health's Clean Air Branch has fined Gay and Robinson Inc. for burning a sugarcane field in Kalaheo, Kaua'i, before 5 a.m. on March 28 and 29.
On March 29, the DOH received a complaint about smoke lingering over Kalaheo. The DOH said it discovered that G&R had violated its agricultural burning permit and it imposed a penalty of $2,400, later reduced to $1,700.
The DOH also fined construction company Jas W. Glover Ltd. (JWG) for not conducting its 2006 annual visible emissions test on some of its diesel engine generators. A penalty of $5,100 was issued and JWG was ordered to take corrective action. After receiving further information from JWG, the DOH reduced the penalty to $3,700 and issued a consent order.
GET CERTIFIED AS MINORITY-OWNED
The state Department of Health's Environmental Program is urging minority- and women-owned businesses to apply to the U.S. Small Business Administration for certification as a Section 8 business, or to the state Department of Transportation for certification as a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise.
Starting Oct. 1, only certified minority-owned and women-owned firms may participate in the Environmental Protection Agency's Fair Share purchasing program.
For more information, contact the Small Business Administration at 541-2990, or the Department of Transportation at 587-2023.
UPC WIND GETS VERMONT NOD
UPC Wind, a North American wind power company with operations in Hawai'i, has cleared a hurdle in its quest to build a 40-megawatt wind farm in Sheffield, Vt.
Pledging to provide revenue and new jobs for the surrounding area, the project received its Certificate of Public Good from the Vermont Public Service Board.
UPC Wind last year opened Maui's first wind farm, a 30-megawatt facility on the slopes of the West Maui mountains above McGregor Point that provides enough power for 11,000 households.
OCEANIC REPORTS PHONE PROBLEMS
Oceanic Time Warner Cable yesterday reported on its Web site that it was having intermittent voice quality issues with its home phone services for local calls and technical difficulties with voice mail service on all islands.
The company also reported a service interruption in Makiki yesterday.
A company spokesman did not return a phone call seeking details about the problems.
Correction: The name of UPC Wind, a North American wind power company, was misspelled in a previous version of this story.
