Energy Lecture Series to Feature CEO of Hawaiian Electric

The head of Hawaii’s biggest electric utility will be the featured speaker at the next presentation on energy matters held at the NELHA Gateway Visitor Center.

Dick Rosenblum, president and CEO of Hawaiian Electric Co., will speak on “Energy Resource Optimization: What’s Best for Hawaii?”

The event to be held at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 7, is the fourth in a series of five free presentations in the Exceptional Energy Lecture Series. It is sponsored in part by the Hawaii Energy Resource Center, a component of the County of Hawaii Department of Research and Development, and by Friends of NELHA.

Rosenblum took over the top spot at HECO in 2009 following 32 years with Southern California Edison, one of the largest utilities in California.

HECO is the parent company of Big Island utility Hawaii Electric Light Co., and Maui Electric.

When he retired from SCE in 2008 he was senior vice president of generation and chief nuclear officer.

During his tenure at the California utility, Rosenblum helped establish one of the world’s largest solar photovoltaic projects designed to place 250 megawatts of solar energy capacity on commercial rooftops in Southern California.

The NELHA Gateway Visitor Center located at Keahole north of Kailua-Kona. NELHA photo.

Other roles he played at SCE included overseeing power transmission and distribution as well as engineering and technical services.

Originally from New York, Rosenblum has been a part-time resident of the Big Island for more than 20 years. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nuclear engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Rosenblum serves on the board of Aloha United Way (Board Chair); Aloha Council, Boy Scouts of America; Hawai‘i Business Roundtable and the High Technology  Development Corporation.

Call 808-329-8073 for information on the lecture series.