Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. stated that James Ajello has been appointed Senior Financial Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer or CFO, effective January 26, 2009. He replaces Curtis Harada, who has been serving since February 2008 as the company's acting Financial Vice President, Treasurer and CFO, along with his ongoing duties as HEI Controller.<br /><br />The Honolulu, Hawaii-based company said that Ajello would report to HEI President and CEO, Constance Lau. Before joining HEI, Ajello served Reliant Energy in Houston, Texas for eight years as mostly Senior Vice President-Business Development and led the company's effort to expand and grow competitive electricity markets across the United States. Ajello is credited for leading the development and operations of a new line of Reliant's business that provide integrated energy solutions to commercial and industrial customers in seven states.<br /><br />Prior to his tenure with Reliant, Ajello served UBS for 14 years in various positions that includes Senior Banker/Managing Director of the Business Development/Corporate Finance Group of UBS Securities, Inc. and Managing Director of the Energy & Natural Resources Group of UBS Warburg/UBS Securities LLC. He also served as managing director and head of UBS Chicago and its corporate banking unit, as well as head of UBS's North American project finance team, responsible for advising clients on, and arranging capital for, large infrastructure projects, including power plants and other capital-intensive assets.<br /><br />Earlier in December, HEI appointed Richard Rosenblum as President and CEO, effective January 1, 2009.<br /><br />Lau said, "We are pleased to be able to add someone with Jim's experience both in banking and in energy finance and customer solutions to our executive team. Not only does Jim bring corporate banking, corporate finance and capital markets expertise, but also a strong entrepreneurial and leadership background in all sectors of the energy field, including energy efficiency solutions and green energy for customers. His background is especially valuable given our utility's focus on helping Hawaii achieve a clean energy future."