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Unconsolidated variable interest entities | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2014
Variable Interest Entity, Not Primary Beneficiary, Disclosures [Abstract] |
Unconsolidated variable interest entities |
6 · Unconsolidated variable interest entities
HECO Capital Trust III. Trust III was created and exists for the exclusive purposes of (i) issuing in March 2004 2,000,000 6.50% Cumulative Quarterly Income Preferred Securities, Series 2004 (2004 Trust Preferred Securities) ($50 million aggregate liquidation preference) to the public and trust common securities ($1.5 million aggregate liquidation preference) to Hawaiian Electric, (ii) investing the proceeds of these trust securities in 2004 Debentures issued by Hawaiian Electric in the principal amount of $31.5 million and issued by Hawaii Electric Light and Maui Electric each in the principal amount of $10 million, (iii) making distributions on these trust securities and (iv) engaging in only those other activities necessary or incidental thereto. The 2004 Trust Preferred Securities are mandatorily redeemable at the maturity of the underlying debt on March 18, 2034, which maturity may be extended to no later than March 18, 2053; and are currently redeemable at the issuer’s option without premium. The 2004 Debentures, together with the obligations of the Utilities under an expense agreement and Hawaiian Electric’s obligations under its trust guarantee and its guarantee of the obligations of Hawaii Electric Light and Maui Electric under their respective debentures, are the sole assets of Trust III. Taken together, Hawaiian Electric’s obligations under the Hawaiian Electric debentures, the Hawaiian Electric indenture, the subsidiary guarantees, the trust agreement, the expense agreement and trust guarantee provide, in the aggregate, a full, irrevocable and unconditional guarantee of payments of amounts due on the Trust Preferred Securities. Trust III has at all times been an unconsolidated subsidiary of Hawaiian Electric. Since Hawaiian Electric, as the holder of 100% of the trust common securities, does not absorb the majority of the variability of Trust III, Hawaiian Electric is not the primary beneficiary and does not consolidate Trust III in accordance with accounting rules on the consolidation of VIEs. Trust III’s balance sheet as of December 31, 2014 consisted of $51.5 million of 2004 Debentures; $50.0 million of 2004 Trust Preferred Securities; and $1.5 million of trust common securities. Trust III’s income statement for 2014 consisted of $3.4 million of interest income received from the 2004 Debentures; $3.3 million of distributions to holders of the Trust Preferred Securities; and $0.1 million of common dividends on the trust common securities to Hawaiian Electric. So long as the 2004 Trust Preferred Securities are outstanding, Hawaiian Electric is not entitled to receive any funds from Trust III other than pro-rata distributions, subject to certain subordination provisions, on the trust common securities. In the event of a default by Hawaiian Electric in the performance of its obligations under the 2004 Debentures or under its Guarantees, or in the event any of the Utilities elect to defer payment of interest on any of their respective 2004 Debentures, then Hawaiian Electric will be subject to a number of restrictions, including a prohibition on the payment of dividends on its common stock. Power purchase agreements. As of December 31, 2014, the Utilities had seven PPAs for firm capacity and other PPAs with smaller IPPs and Schedule Q providers (i.e., customers with cogeneration and/or small power production facilities with a capacity of 100 kilowatts (kWs) or less who buy power from or sell power to the Utilities), none of which are currently required to be consolidated as VIEs. Approximately 90% of the firm capacity is purchased from AES Hawaii, Inc. (AES Hawaii), Kalaeloa Partners, L.P. (Kalaeloa), Hamakua Energy Partners, L.P. (HEP) and HPOWER. Purchases from all IPPs were as follows:
Years ended December 31 |  | 2014 |  | 2013 |  | 2012
(in millions) |  |  |  |  |  |
AES Hawaii |  | $ | 145 |  |  | $ | 134 |  |  | $ | 146 |
Kalaeloa |  | 279 |  |  | 301 |  |  | 310 |
HEP |  | 51 |  |  | 51 |  |  | 65 |
HPOWER |  | 66 |  |  | 61 |  |  | 65 |
Other IPPs |  | 181 |  |  | 164 |  |  | 138 |
Total IPPs |  | $ | 722 |  |  | $ | 711 |  |  | $ | 724 |
Some of the IPPs provided sufficient information for Hawaiian Electric to determine that the IPP was not a VIE, or was either a “business” or “governmental organization,” and thus excluded from the scope of accounting standards for VIEs. Other IPPs, including the three largest, declined to provide the information necessary for Hawaiian Electric to determine the applicability of accounting standards for VIEs. Since 2004, Hawaiian Electric has continued its efforts to obtain from the IPPs the information necessary to make the determinations required under accounting standards for VIEs. In each year from 2005 to 2014, the Utilities sent letters to the identified IPPs requesting the required information. All of these IPPs declined to provide the necessary information, except that Kalaeloa later agreed to provide the information pursuant to the amendments to its PPA (see below) and an entity owning a wind farm provided information as required under its PPA. Management has concluded that the consolidation of two entities owning wind farms was not required as Hawaii Electric Light and Maui Electric do not have variable interests in the entities because the PPAs do not require them to absorb any variability of the entities. If the requested information is ultimately received from the remaining IPPs, a possible outcome of future analyses of such information is the consolidation of one or more of such IPPs in the Consolidated Financial Statements. The consolidation of any significant IPP could have a material effect on the Consolidated Financial Statements, including the recognition of a significant amount of assets and liabilities and, if such a consolidated IPP were operating at a loss and had insufficient equity, the potential recognition of such losses. If the Utilities determine they are required to consolidate the financial statements of such an IPP and the consolidation has a material effect, the Utilities would retrospectively apply accounting standards for VIEs. Kalaeloa Partners, L.P. In October 1988, Hawaiian Electric entered into a PPA with Kalaeloa, subsequently approved by the PUC, which provided that Hawaiian Electric would purchase 180 MW of firm capacity for a period of 25 years beginning in May 1991. In October 2004, Hawaiian Electric and Kalaeloa entered into amendments to the PPA, subsequently approved by the PUC, which together effectively increased the firm capacity from 180 MW to 208 MW. The energy payments that Hawaiian Electric makes to Kalaeloa include: (1) a fuel component, with a fuel price adjustment based on the cost of low sulfur fuel oil, (2) a fuel additives cost component, and (3) a non-fuel component, with an adjustment based on changes in the Gross National Product Implicit Price Deflator. The capacity payments that Hawaiian Electric makes to Kalaeloa are fixed in accordance with the PPA. Kalaeloa also has a steam delivery cogeneration contract with another customer, the term of which coincides with the PPA. The facility has been certified by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as a Qualifying Facility under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978. Pursuant to the current accounting standards for VIEs, Hawaiian Electric is deemed to have a variable interest in Kalaeloa by reason of the provisions of Hawaiian Electric’s PPA with Kalaeloa. However, management has concluded that Hawaiian Electric is not the primary beneficiary of Kalaeloa because Hawaiian Electric does not have the power to direct the activities that most significantly impact Kalaeloa’s economic performance nor the obligation to absorb Kalaeloa’s expected losses, if any, that could potentially be significant to Kalaeloa. Thus, Hawaiian Electric has not consolidated Kalaeloa in its consolidated financial statements. A significant factor affecting the level of expected losses Hawaiian Electric could potentially absorb is the fact that Hawaiian Electric’s exposure to fuel price variability is limited to the remaining term of the PPA as compared to the facility’s remaining useful life. Although Hawaiian Electric absorbs fuel price variability for the remaining term of the PPA, the PPA does not currently expose Hawaiian Electric to losses as the fuel and fuel related energy payments under the PPA have been approved by the PUC for recovery from customers through base electric rates and through Hawaiian Electric’s ECAC to the extent the fuel and fuel related energy payments are not included in base energy rates. As of December 31, 2014, Hawaiian Electric’s accounts payable to Kalaeloa amounted to $13 million.

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