Aug 16 (Reuters) – Hawaiian Electric Industries (HE.N) is speaking with restructuring advisory firms to address financial and legal challenges over its potential liabilities in the wake of the Maui wildfires, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
The utility firm is in discussions over the strategies it can pursue and to determine whether it needs to hire legal and financial advisers, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.
Hawaiian Electric did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for a comment.
The stock is down about 55% so far this week amid increasing scrutiny over whether the utility company’s equipment might have played any role in the deadly wildfires.
It lost roughly $730 million in value on Tuesday, as the stock price hit its lowest level since 2009.
S&P Global Ratings downgraded Hawaiian Electric to “BB-” on Tuesday and placed it on watch for further downgrades, citing damage caused to its customer base and class-action lawsuits filed against the company alleging it was responsible for the fires.
The cause of the wildfires, which have killed at least 99 people and destroyed the coastal Maui town of Lahaina, is under investigation.
Reporting by Sourasis Bose in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar
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