MOU Signing with HECO

Left to right: Paul Putzulu, State Fusion Center; Maj Gen Arthur “Joe” Logan, Adjutant General, Connie Lau, President and CEO, Hawaiian Electric Industries, Stephen M. McMenamin, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Hawaiian Electric Industries

Hawaiian Electric Company and the Hawai‘i State Fusion Center, under the direction of the State of Hawai‘i Department of Defense, today committed to collaborate on safety and security to safeguard the people of Hawaii.

The two organizations signed a  (MOU) to share information about cyber-criminal activity, terrorism, and natural or human-caused disasters as a way of further protecting the people of Hawai‘i and essential infrastructure and assets like the utility grid.

The Hawai‘i State Fusion Center includes federal, state, local, territorial, and private sector partners who are committed to sharing actionable intelligence for the safety and security of Hawai‘i and the nation.

The MOU was signed by Maj. Gen. Arthur “Joe” Logan, state adjutant general and homeland security advisor who directs fusion center activities, and Connie Lau who chairs Hawaiian Electric’s board and is president & CEO of HEI, Inc.   “We see the Hawaii State Fusion Center as a unique ‘neighborhood watch’ where public and private organizations can share and receive information about threats – from terrorism to inclement weather – that could affect Hawaiian Electric’s ability to deliver safe and reliable service to all our customers,” said Stephen M. McMenamin, Hawaiian Electric senior vice president and chief information officer. “This includes information about our power generation and distribution systems. It does not include private information of our customers.”

The Fusion Center is structured to empower front-line law enforcement, public safety, fire service, emergency response, public health, critical infrastructure protection, and private sector security personnel to understand local implications of national intelligence, thus enabling local officials to better protect their communities. In addition, the HSFC directly supports territorial partner American Samoa and coordinates with the Guam-based Marianas Regional Fusion Center, the sole Asia-Pacific regional Fusion Center partner.