Hawaiian Electric, others reach $4B settlement with Maui wildfire plaintiffs (NYSE:HE)

Hawaiian Electrical Industries (New York:HE) and six other defendants have reached a $4 billion settlement that will resolve lawsuits filed by hundreds of victims of last year’s Maui wildfires.

Under the proposed global settlement, which remains subject to final documentation and court approval, Seven defendants will pay $4.037 billion to provide compensation to all for claims related to wildfires nearly a year ago, according to statement From Hawaii Governor Josh Green on Friday.

Hawaiian Electric (HE) said in a separate statement Friday that it will pay about $2 billion of the settlement.

The proposed settlement is a preliminary agreement. The agreement is conditional on the resolution of the insurers’ claims that have already been paid for property losses and other damages, without any additional payments from the defendants. The plaintiffs will have 90 days to reach an agreement with the insurers on the division of the proceeds or for a judge to rule that the insurers’ exclusive remedy is to seek to recover the payments owed to each of the plaintiffs, among other conditions.

“This was an extraordinary and unprecedented effort by so many people to address the tragic impacts of wildfires in less than a year,” Governor Green said in the statement. “To resolve this issue so quickly shows how Hawaii is different, and how we come together in times of crisis to recover together as a community.”

Payments are expected to begin by mid-2025 if the settlement is approved.

The settlement comes after Bloomberg reported on July 18 that the two parties were close to a tentative settlement, sending Hawaiian Electric (HE) shares up 37% that day. The $4 billion total would be less than the estimated $5.5 billion in capital costs the fires caused in a damage assessment released last year.

The higher education institution is scheduled to discuss this settlement further on its quarterly earnings call scheduled for next Friday.