Sharon Suzuki serves on the board of directors of the Maui Hotel and Lodging Association and chairs the Soroptimist International of Maui’s Youth Citizenship Awards. She has also served as a member of the County of Maui Energy Alliance and the County of Maui Community Working Group on Wastewater Management.

KAHULUI – Parent company Hawaiian Electric Company last week announced the appointment of Sharon M. Suzuki as president of Maui Electric Company, effective May 1.

Currently serving as MECO’s manager of renewable energy services, Suzuki will succeed Ed Reinhardt, who will be retiring after a 26-year career at the utility, the last ten years as president.

To aid in the transition, Reinhardt will become president emeritus on May 1 until his official retirement at the end of June.

“Under Ed’s guidance, Maui Electric has become a global leader in integrating clean energy with large-scale wind energy, more than 600 percent growth in solar energy in the last three years and the use of biofuels for power generation,” said Dick Rosenblum, Hawaiian Electric president and chief executive officer.

“Ed has also been instrumental in encouraging innovative projects for the future, such as capturing power plant stack gas to produce algae for biofuels, wave energy, electric vehicles and smart grid initiatives. He works closely with the Maui community, and his leadership will be greatly missed,” Rosenblum continued.

“At the same time, Sharon brings an established record in strategic planning and managing renewable energy programs, customer service operations, integrated resource planning and energy efficiency programs. Working with our strong operations team, Maui Electric will be in good hands under her leadership.”

Reinhardt commented, “Sharon has a collaborative management style and demonstrated ability to understand and address the needs of diverse stakeholders. She’s played a key role at Maui Electric, and I know she’ll do a great job leading the team.”

Suzuki has also held positions as Maui Electric manager of customer service, Hawaiian Electric director of customer account services, and residential and commercial/industrial energy efficiency program manager.

She has worked in strategic planning and management consulting with Pacific Resources Inc., Coopers & Lybrand, Arthur Young & Company, Northrop Corporation, and Hughes Aircraft.

She is a Certified Energy Manager with a Masters of Business Administration in Finance from California State University at Fullerton, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Japanese from the University of Michigan. She is a graduate of Castle High School.

“I am very honored to be given this opportunity,” said Suzuki. “I look forward to working with the Maui Electric team to meet and surpass our goals for clean energy and customer service. With the foundation that Ed has built, we are well on our way.”