DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

It's a story increasingly familiar in the energy industry: Some utility companies don't properly assess the risks wildfires pose to their operations. The primary purpose is to prevent power lines from igniting a wildfire during periods of high fire danger. The lawsuit also alleges the company "inexcusably kept their power lines energized during the forecasted high-fire danger conditions." A PG&E utility worker locates a gas main line in the rubble of a home burned down by wildfire in Paradise, California, Nov. 13, 2018. Several of those agencies track statewide wildfire information, but most did not keep track of the names of utility companies associated with wildfire incidents.

Persons: Michelle Glogovac, Glogovac, Laurie Allen, Brent Jones, Allen, Jones, inexcusably, Michael Wara, Shelee Kimura, Yuki Iwamura, David Pomerantz, Pomerantz, Patti Poppe, It's, JOSH EDELSON, Warren Buffett's, Stanford's, CNBC's Brian Sullivan, David Paul Morris, Institute's Pomerantz, Tama Organizations: CNBC, Electric, Energy, Stanford University, Hawaiian Electric, AFP, Getty, Policy, Policy Institute, NV Energy, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Energy, Bloomberg, Getty Images Locations: Paradise , California, Lahaina , Hawaii, Hawaii, Maui, Maui County, Lahaina, California, Nevada, Warren, — Arizona, California , Colorado, Hawaii , Montana , Nevada , New Mexico , Oregon , Utah, Washington, Arizona , New Mexico, Utah

☆ $800,000 tuna to be turned into sushi at Michelin-starred restaurant
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-06 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewA bluefin tuna sold for 114.2 million Japanese yen, or nearly $800,000, at Tokyo's largest fish market is set to be served at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Japan. The prized tuna will be enjoyed by diners at the Michelin-starred sushi restaurant Onodera in Tokyo's upmarket Ginza district, reported The Japan Times. Media crowd around as a 524 pound bluefin tuna - which was purchased earlier in the day for $788,440 at the first tuna auction of the New Year in Tokyo on January 5, 2024. The world record price for a tuna was set in 2019, when the sushi tycoon and "Tuna King," Kiyoshi Kimura, paid $3.1 million for a 612-pound fish. AdvertisementDerek Wilcox, a chef trained in Japan and who worked there for 10 years, previously told Business Insider that bluefin tuna was "the most sought after."

Persons: —, Hiroki Matsushita, Yukitaka Yamaguchi, Bluefin, RICHARD A, BROOKS, Kiyoshi Kimura, Kimura, Derek Wilcox Organizations: Service, Michelin, Bloomberg, Business, Onodera Group, Japan Times, Media, Getty, Japan National Tourism Organization, AFP, Oma Locations: Japan, Aomori Prefecture, Ginza, Tokyo, AFP

☆ Everything we know about 'Squid Game' season 2
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Ayomikun Adekaiyero | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Season one's protagonist Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) will return in season two. Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun in "Squid Game" season two. In a Netflix statement shared in June 2022, "Squid Game" creator Hwang Dong-Hyuk confirmed that Gi-hun will return for the second season. While the extent of his role in the second season has not been clarified, he will likely be fighting against the people in charge of the competition. In August 2022, Hwang indicated to The Hollywood Reporter that season two will focus on Gi-hun's transformation from the end of the first season.

Persons: Seong, Lee Jung, jae, Cho Sang, Oh, Hideo Kimura, Hwang Dong, Hyuk, Hwang Organizations: Netflix, Hollywood Reporter

☆ US House panel asks Hawaiian Electric CEO to testify in wildfire probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The shells of burned houses and buildings are left after wildfires driven by high winds burned across most of the town in Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, U.S. August 11, 2023. Hawai'i Department of Land and Natural Resources/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc FollowSept 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday asked utility company Hawaiian Electric (HE.N) CEO Shelee Kimura to testify at a hearing investigating the causes of the wildfire that killed at least 115 people and razed the historic town of Lahaina. Along with Kimura, the committee also summoned officials of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission and the Hawai’i State Energy Office. Last month, the panel sent letters to Hawaiian Electric as well as state utility officials, seeking information about the wildfires. Reporting by Mrinalika Roy and Sourasis Bose in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja DesaiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Shelee Kimura, Kimura, Mrinalika Roy, Sourasis Bose, Pooja Desai Organizations: Hawai'i Department of Land, Natural Resources, REUTERS, Hawaiian Electric Industries, U.S . House Energy, Commerce, Electric, Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, Hawai’i, Energy Office, Thomson Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, U.S, Washington, United States, Bengaluru

☆ Challenge that the region is facing is 'immense,' says Asian Development Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Tomoyuki Kimura, director general of the ADB, said the region is facing immense challenges, including climate change, the Covid pandemic and natural disasters, and joint effort is needed to meet countries' funding needs.

Persons: Tomoyuki Kimura Organizations: ADB

☆ Asian Development Bank says the world faces 'immense' funding challenges
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Asia and the rest of the world face "immense" challenges, and the Asian Development Bank must work with others to address those issues, its director general told CNBC on Friday. "The challenge that we are facing in this region and also globally, are immense, including climate change. "So this is a limitation for different countries to take more debt for their sustainable development and climate change." He said multilateral development banks "can and must take bold action to help address the challenges." "First of all, we need to ramp up our lending capacity ... but also, we need extra efforts to mobilize more money from private sector," he said.

Persons: Tomoyuki Kimura, CNBC's Tanvir Gill, Covid Organizations: Asian Development Bank, CNBC, ADB Locations: Asia, New Delhi

For Miyazaki, who painstakingly crafts thousands of hand drawings for a film, it's a long and laborious process. Several of Miyazaki's films rank among the biggest box-office hits ever in Japan; there are few other filmmakers today as revered — and fiercely beloved — as Miyazaki. “I am making this movie because I do not have the answer," Miyazaki told The New York Times in 2021. We are again, invited into a dizzyingly colorful otherworldly fantasy of Miyazaki's making. If this is to be the last Miyazaki movie (it would be unwise to ever really count him out), it's a tremendously moving goodbye.

Persons: Miyazaki's, Miyazaki, “, ”, —, Mozart, Guillermo del Toro, Mahito Maki, Soma Santoki, It's, Mahito's mother's, Yoshino Kimura, Mahito's, Masaki Suda, Mei, Mahito, Jake Coyle Organizations: TORONTO, Toronto, New York Times, Twitter Locations: Japan, Miyazaki, Toronto, Tokyo

☆ Who caused Maui’s devastating wildfire? Lawsuit adds telecom companies and landowners to the list
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Andy Rose | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The original suit claimed Hawaiian Electric was to blame for the fire, because it did not deenergize power lines that were knocked down by high winds. Shares of Hawaiian Electric have plunged 67% since the fires erupted August 8. Hawaiian Telecom is privately owned. Maui County filed a separate lawsuit late last month against Hawaiian Electric and its subsidiaries, alleging that the utility company’s negligence caused the devastating wildfires. Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee Kimura said in a statement following Maui’s lawsuit that the company believes the complaint is factually and legally irresponsible.”

Persons: LippSmith, Graham LippSmith, “, ”, inexcusably, Shelee Kimura Organizations: CNN, Hawaiian, Lahaina, Charter Communications, Hawaiian Telecom, Hawaii Telecom, Electric, Hawaiian Electric, National Weather Service, Watch Locations: Maui, Lahaina, Kula, Olinda, Charter, West Maui, Maui County

☆ Hawaiian Electric points finger at Maui County over devastating wildfires, stock jumps 40%
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Search and recovery team members check charred buildings and cars in the aftermath of the Maui Fires in Lahaina, West Maui, Hawaii, August 17, 2023. "We were surprised and disappointed that the County of Maui rushed to court even before completing its own investigation," Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee Kimura said in a statement Sunday. The small fire near the downed poles spread into a field near Lahaina Intermediate School. The Maui County Fire Department responded to the morning fire and declared it had been extinguished, according to the company's account of events leading up to the wildfires. Hawaiian Electric said the power had been off for hours when the crew witnessed that second fire in the field.

Persons: Shelee Kimura, Kimura Organizations: Electric, Lahaina Intermediate School, Maui County Fire Department, Hawaiian Locations: Maui, Lahaina , West Maui, Hawaii, Maui County, Lahaina

☆ Maui wildfire: Hawaiian Electric says power lines started morning fire on August 8, but not afternoon Lahaina Fire
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Natasha Chen Anna-Maja Rappard Cheri Mossburg | Natasha Chen | Anna-Maja Rappard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Hawaiian Electric Company said that power lines falling in high winds seem to have caused a fire during the early morning of August 8, but power lines in West Maui had been de-energized for more than six hours by the time a second afternoon fire began in the Lahaina area. The company made the comments in a new response Sunday to a lawsuit filed by the County of Maui. In a press release, HECO mentioned videos showing that power lines had fallen to the ground in high winds near the intersection of Lahainaluna Road and Hookahua Street at approximately 6:30am. But that morning fire was declared 100% contained by the Maui County Fire Department by 9am, they said. By the time the Maui County Fire Department arrived back on the scene, it was not able to contain that fire, and it spread out of control toward Lahaina, the release says.

Persons: “ inexcusably, HECO, ”, John Fiske, “, Fiske, Shelee Kimura, ” Kimura Organizations: CNN, Hawaiian Electric Company, National Weather Service, Watch, Maui County Fire Department, Hawaiian Electric, Intermediate, ” CNN Locations: West Maui, Lahaina, County, Maui, Maui County

[1/2] A view of burned debris after wildfires devastated the historic town of Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, U.S., August 10, 2023. Maui County sued Hawaiian Electric last week, accusing the utility of negligently failing to shut off power and causing the devastating fires that destroyed the coastal town of Lahaina and killed more than 114 people. "We were surprised and disappointed that the County of Maui rushed to court even before completing its own investigation," CEO Shelee Kimura said in a statement. Even with Monday's rally, shares are still down more than 60% since the wildfires started on Aug. 8. "To the extent HECO (Hawaiian Electric Co) has information of a second ignition source, HECO should offer that evidence now.

Persons: Shelee Kimura, HECO, John Fiske, Raymond James, Pavel Molchanov, Arunima Kumar, Mrinalika Roy, Louise Heavens, Mark Potter, Maju Samuel, Shounak Organizations: Hawai'i Department of Land, Natural Resources, REUTERS, Hawaiian Electric Industries, Hawaiian Electric, Electric, Thomson Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, U.S, Maui County, West Maui, Bengaluru

Hawaiian Electric CEO Shelee Kimura received a cash bonus in 2022 based on her performance against 10 measures including profit and customer satisfaction. Wildfire risk mitigation was not on the list, according to the utility’s pay disclosures. Wildfire risk had been a concern for several years before the blaze ripped through Lahaina, a historic resort town in Maui. Idacorp declined to comment on its pay practices and how they relate to wildfire mitigation. “You don’t want a wildfire disaster to be the catalyst for a change in public policy,” said Glazer, who supports linking executive pay to wildfire mitigation.

Persons: Mike Blake, ”, Alison Silverstein, Shelee Kimura, Kimura, “, Michael Cerasoli, Michael Underhill, Brian Buckham, ” Buckham, Idacorp, Larry Glazer, Glazer, Tim McLaughlin, Tom Hals, Peter Henderson, Noeleen Walder, Rich Valdmanis, Marguerita Choy Organizations: Workers, REUTERS, Hawaiian Electric, U.S . Federal Energy Regulatory, Electric, Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, San Diego Gas &, Global Renewable Energy Income Fund, Reuters, Capital Innovations, SEC, Portland General Electric Co, Boston’s Mayflower Advisors, Thomson Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, U.S, California, Honolulu, Maui ., Idaho , Oregon, Washington, Idaho

An aerial view shows the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant following a strong earthquake, in Okuma town, Fukushima prefecture, Japan in this photo taken by Kyodo on March 17, 2022. Members of a group that tracks such levels in food and seawater, they fear Japan's plans to release treated radioactive water into the sea near the Fukushima nuclear plant could stir an anxiety among residents reminiscent of the 2011 disaster. "The people of Fukushima endured the risks for the last 12 years and have confirmed the radiation level has dropped," said Ai Kimura, director of non-profit group Mothers' Radiation Lab Fukushima, also known as Tarachine. Japan is preparing this summer to start discharging into the Pacific more than a million tons of water from the tsunami-crippled power plant, but has not yet revealed the date. Reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka, Akiko Okamoto and Tom Bateman; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ai Kimura, Kimura, what's, Kimura's, Kiyoshi Takenaka, Akiko Okamoto, Tom Bateman, Chang, Ran Kim, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Kyodo, Rights Companies Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Tokyo Electric Power, Thomson Locations: Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, Japan, IWAKI, Fukushima, Iwaki, Pacific, China, Tarachine

It's our loved ones," Pelletier said, relating the instructions that a director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency gave rescue workers in a briefing. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsEven as Hawaii officials promised more help for the displaced, some Lahaina residents were taking matters into their own hands. Officials declined to estimate how many remained unaccounted for but promised they were meticulously verifying the status of all. The database includes names collected from "missing persons" notices posted at shelters as well as information submitted by loved ones. Reuters GraphicsBar chart shows visitor spending share of GDP to Maui and Hawaii which are much higher than that for the entire U.S.

Persons: Jorge Garcia KAHULUI, John Pelletier, It's, " Pelletier, Patience, Kanamu, Balindin, Pelletier, Shelee Kimura, ”, Kimura, Josh Green, Jeremy Greenberg, Chris Young, Green, Jorge Garcia, Mike Blake, Brendan O'Brien, Rich McKay, Andrew Hay, Brad Brooks, Sharon Bernstein, Dan Whitcomb, Frank McGurty, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Maui County Police, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Hawaiian Electric Industries, Hawaiian Electric, Federal Emergency Management, Cross, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii, U.S, Maui County, buffeted, “, California

Many wildfires in the United States occur when poles owned by utilities or other structures carrying power lines are blown down, or when branches or other objects land on power lines and cause them to produce high-energy flashes of electricity that can start fires. Image Nearly a week after the wildfire tore through Lahaina, state and local officials have not determined a cause for the blaze. Like most other utilities, Hawaiian Electric operates under the scrutiny of public commissioners who have to approve its spending plans. Power lines have caused catastrophic wildfires in California in recent years, prompting lawsuits that have led to multibillion-dollar payouts by the state’s utilities. Hawaiian Electric in a regulatory filing last year detailed measures aimed at reducing the risk of its equipment causing fires.

Persons: Hurricane Dora, “, ”, James Frantz, Frantz, There’s, Max Whittaker, Shahriar Pourreza, Shelee Kimura, ” Ms, Kimura, Pourreza, Michael Wara, Philip Cheung, Bob Marshall, Jim Kelly, Ken Pimlott, Anne Lopez, Mr, Wara, Kellen Browning, John Keefe, Susan C, Beachy, Alain Delaquérière Organizations: Wildfire, National Weather Service, Frantz Law, Hawaiian Electric, The New York Times, Guggenheim Securities, Maui Electric, Pacific Gas, Pacific Gas and Electric, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Pacific Disaster Center, Stanford University, The New York Times Lightning, Western, NASA, Whisker Labs, Labs, California Department of Forestry, Stanford, U.S . Energy Information Administration Locations: Lahaina, West Maui, Maui, California, United States, Northern California, Paradise, Hawaii, Western United States, Maui County, Germantown, Md, San Francisco

Privately-owned Miki House, like other Japanese companies, is contending with a shrinking workforce, with an estimated shortage of 3.41 million workers by 2030, according to labour policy research group Recruit Works Institute. When Kimura founded Miki House in 1971, Japan had about 2.6 million births a year and was undergoing a rapid economic expansion that prompted parents to splurge on fashionable goods for their youngsters. PRODUCTION SHIFTSJapan's Fast Retailing (9983.T), the nation's biggest clothing seller and owner of bargain brand Uniqlo, manufactures almost all of its products overseas. At Miki House, about 70% of products are still made domestically, but some items, such as children's shoes, cannot be made locally at scale and are manufactured in Vietnam. Demand is shifting too, with about 60% of sales coming from overseas, where Miki House operates 95 stores in 16 countries and regions.

REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File PhotoCommodity trade finance covers many types of loans, typically from banks, that facilitate global movement of goods from wheat to gasoline. Most trade finance loans are short-term, less than a year. Traders’ credit lines became strained last year when natural gas prices sky-rocketed in the fourth quarter. ‘DESIRE TO DIVERSIFY’Lending for commodity trade finance has become more diverse, with non-bank financial institutions (NBFI) stepping in. The underlying issue was the retreat of major banks from commodity financing after some 2020 defaults in the sector while Russian banks Sberbank and Gazprombank that were set to expand have now been shut out of Europe.

Commodity trade finance covers many types of loans, typically from banks, that facilitate global movement of goods from wheat to gasoline. Most trade finance loans are short-term, less than a year. The involvement of hedge funds in commodity trade finance has created a lifeline for smaller firms, deemed to be higher risk for banks due to strict capital requirements and clean energy goals. 'DESIRE TO DIVERSIFY'Lending for commodity trade finance has become more diverse, with non-bank financial institutions (NBFI) stepping in. The Swiss firm specialises in financing small to mid-sized commodity merchants and has achieved returns between 6% to 10% over the last 10 years.

☆ A 'lost generation' of Hollywood workers has been frozen in place by the pandemic, leaving the next wave of creatives and execs in limbo
▼ + stars: | 2021-08-26 | by ( Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

The couple enlisted family to help with childcare, and he took the script coordinator gig for the possibility of being upped to staff writer. "I'm not going to script coordinate, I'm not going to be a writers' assistant — at least not for an unlivable wage." Silver linings for some support staffersIn an industry in which abrasive execs are known for hurling invective — and sometimes staplers — at assistants, pandemic separation likely came as a relief for some. "So they bumped me and made me script coordinator, which gave me a lot more job security." 'A lost generation of assistants and entry-level employees'Studios, agencies, and media conglomerates across Hollywood have been hit with pandemic-related layoffs and furloughs.

Search resuls for: "Kimura"

19 mentions found