Texas owner of Hawaii’s largest refinery sees major uptick in earnings

Houston-based Par Petroleum Corp., which owns Hawaii’s largest oil refinery, had quite a turnaround last year, going from a net loss of $50.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2013 to a profit of $31.7 million in the same quarter last year, according to its most recent earnings report.

The gain translates to $82.2 million, which can be attributed to improved operations and market conditions, according to Par Petroleum President and CEO Jospeh Israel.

The losses for the refiner and marketer of petroleum…

Apple, SixtyEight Research, and a possible secret auto lab in Sunnyvale

Apple Inc. is well beyond the concept stage of its rumored top-secret electric car project at a Sunnyvale site located nearby Apple’s Cupertino headquarters, according the AppleInsider.

Bloomberg previously reported Apple hopes to have its electric ready to begin production by 2020. Two people with knowledge of Titan, the project’s code name, say Apple has been working on the car project and receiving shipments related to its development at a location in Sunnyvale. That’s the former campus of Maxim…

California developer Terramar buys three Hawaii shopping centers from Safeway for $156M

Terramar Retail Centers, a California-based shopping center owner and developer, has completed the purchase of three retail centers in Hawaii from Safeway’s development arm for about $156 million, as part of a bigger $830 million acquisition of centers along the West Coast and Hawaii, according to public records.

The sales, which recently closed, include the 23-acre Safeway-anchored Hokulei Village in Lihue on Kauai for $52.25 million, the 12-acre Safeway-anchored Lahaina Cannery Shops on Maui for…

Honolulu boutique developer to build nine-unit condo project

Local Honolulu developer Centre City Development LLC has introduced its first residential project, Hauoli Lofts, a $6.5 million, nine-unit condominium in the Moiliili-McCully area of the city.

The project, located at 914 Hauoli St., will break ground sometime in the spring and is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2016.

Centre City Development is led by Christian O’Connor, formerly of Kamehameha Schools, and Wei Fang of Interisland Terminal, who met while working on projects in Kakaako.…

New CPUC boss wants to slap PG&E with a bigger fine for San Bruno explosion

Michael Picker, the new president of the California Public Utilities Commission, late Friday proposed to fine Pacific Gas & Electric $1.6 billion in connection with the September 2010 San Bruno gas pipeline explosion and fire, and their aftermath. That’s $200 million more than the CPUC’s previous proposal.

New boss at troubled state utilities agency: This is my top priority (Video)

Picker’s new proposal would also steer $850 million of the penalty specifically toward pipeline safety enhancement.…