BUSINESS BRIEFS
Hoku's stock price hits record high
Advertiser Staff
Shares of Kapolei-based Hoku Scientific Inc. closed up $1.71, or 14 percent, to a record high of $14.19 yesterday on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Hoku's previous closing high of $14.05 a share was reached last summer.
The move comes one day after Hoku announced that Idaho Power Co. will construct a power substation for the Hoku-planned polysilicon plant for $14.8 million.
Hoku is building the plant in Pocatello, Idaho, to provide polysilicon to the solar-power industry, which uses the material as a key component for its products. Polysilicon demand and prices have risen significantly as supplies have come under pressure.
O'BRIEN CFO OF JACKSON HEWITT
Daniel P. O'Brien, former Hawaiian Telcom senior vice president and chief financial officer, has been named executive vice president and chief financial officer of Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc.
O'Brien left Hawaiian Telcom last year. He will oversee all of the financial operations, including accounting and financial reporting, treasury, financial planning and analysis and investor relations for Jackson Hewitt, which has more than 6,500 franchised and company-owned offices in the U.S.
Prior to his work with Hawaiian Telcom, O'Brien, 53, served as chief financial officer for Global Crossing, Genuity Corporation and GTE Corp. He earned his B.S. in chemistry from Boston College and his MBA with concentrations in finance and accounting from the University of Chicago.
FAIRMONT ORCHID HIRES NEW CHEF
The Fairmont Orchid has hired executive chef Collin Thornton to oversee the culinary operations of the Big Island 540-room luxury resort.
Thornton, who starts his new job on Jan. 21, will be in charge of the resort's five restaurants and banquet and event functions.
Most recently, Thornton was at The Fairmont Chateau Laurier in Ontario, Canada as executive chef. He brings nearly 17 years of experience with him, beginning in 1992 as apprentice chef at the Petroleum Club in Edmonton, Canada.
UPC WIND TO BUILD NEW WIND FARM
UPC Wind, a North American wind power company with operations in Hawai'i, has received final approval from the Maine Land Use Regulation Commission to build a 57-megawatt wind farm in Washington County, Maine.
The project proposed for the slopes of Stetson Mountain has received support from leading environmental groups such as Maine Audubon, Natural Resource Council, Appalachian Mountain Club and Conservation Law Foundation.
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.
PARENT OF AIRGAS GASPRO EXPANDS
The parent company of Airgas Gaspro has acquired the assets and operations of Pima Welding Supply Inc., an industrial gas and welding supply distributor in Tucson, Ariz. The newly acquired company has been integrated into Airgas West, one of the regional companies within Pennsylvania-based Airgas Inc.
Airgas has more than 14,000 employees in more than 1,100 locations, including branches, retail stores, gas fill plants, specialty gas labs, production facilities and distribution centers. Airgas Gaspro has operations on O'ahu, the Big Island, Maui and Kaua'i.
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