Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
Thursday, March 22, 2001
Investor bids $700,000 for Sia property on Oahu
Honolulu real estate investor Joseph Mastrantonio is bidding to buy a vacant 1.6-acre Maunalani Circle property owned by bankrupt investor Sukamto Sia for $700,000, about half the asking price of $1.3 million.U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Lloyd King will conduct a hearing April 18 to confirm the sale, although larger offers will be accepted from those who can show financial backing.
Sia and wife Indriati Latief bought the residential land for $1.3 million in 1988, records show. The parcel lies among a block of homes atop Wilhemina Rise, high above Waialae Avenue. Zoning allows for subdividing into smaller lots.
Sia currently resides under guard in the Waikiki Landmark condominiums, awaiting trial in May on charges of fraud and money laundering surrounding his filing for bankruptcy in 1998.
The residential land, listed Dec. 15 by ReMax Honolulu, is being sold to help pay off Sia's creditors, which include several Las Vegas hotels and casinos. Since the offering, the property has received a couple dozen inquiries and two initial offers, according to a filing Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Sale of the property would not carry any liens.
Hawaii tech companies testify in Washington
Hawaii Democratic Rep. Neil Abercrombie gave two Hawaii technology companies a plug by inviting their leaders to testify at a hearing today (Thursday) of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Research and Development. Nicholas J. Susner, chief executive officer of Science and Technology International, and Patrick K. Sullivan, CEO of Oceanit, both were to appear before the committee.Susner says that after the Ehime Maru accident, his firm developed a collision-avoidance system that allows submarines to look for surface vessels without using the periscope. Sullivan's firm pioneered technology that he says helps gather information about objects in space for a fraction of the cost of conventional technology. Both firm have won federal contracts in the past.
Savers in Japan earn little in interest
TOKYO >> The decline in interest rates in Japan has cut returns for savers. The nation's major banks are lowering interest rates for individual savings accounts this week to a record low of 0.02 percent from 0.1 percent. That means putting &YEN1 million ($8,080) in a Japanese bank these days earns just &YEN200 ($1.60) a year in interest. The rate cuts for savers follows a decision by the central bank Monday to lower its key lending rates to near zero in an attempt to breathe life back into the economy, which has been ailing for more than a decade.
Allegheny Energy makes big California connection
HAGERSTOWN, Md. >> Allegheny Energy Inc. said today it has agreed to sell $4.5 billion worth of power to California's electricity-purchasing agency over the next 10 years.The firm said the contract calls for Allegheny to provide up to 1,000 megawatts that the Hagerstown-based firm has secured from western generating plants through its new energy trading division, Allegheny Energy Global Markets -- formerly Merrill Lynch Global Energy Markets. "This is a win-win for both the state of California and Allegheny Energy. It provides a long-term source of fixed-price energy and should help to stabilize prices in California," said Michael Morrell, president of Allegheny Energy Supply.