IN HAWAII

Kaanapali Water Corp. is sold for $7.7 million

Kaanapali Water Corp., which provides water utility services to 500 customers in Maui, has been sold by DQE Inc. subsidiary AquaSource Utilities Inc. to California Water Service Group for $7.7 million.

The deal for the Maui company, whose customers include 10 resorts and eight condominium projects, is expected to close in the middle of next year, subject to regulatory approval of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission. California Water said it will retain all seven employees and form a Hawaii-based subsidiary to operate the system.

California Water provides water utility services to more than 2 million people in 96 California, Washington and New Mexico communities.

Pittsburgh-based DQE, which said it wants to focus on its "back-to-basics" business strategy, has been seeking to sell all or some of the remaining operations of AquaSource, the largest privately owned water and wastewater service provider in Texas. The sale of AquaSource's Maui operations is part DQE's plan to concentrate on the company's electric utility operations and its complementary businesses.

PTC boasts varied speakers lineup

Speakers from Korea and the mainland United States will headline January's Pacific Telecommunications Conference.

Joseph Flaherty, a leading developer of digital and high definition television; Sanghoon Lee, executive vice president for research at Korea Telecom; and Fred Briggs, president of operations and technology at WorldCom Inc., will speak at the 25th annual gathering of technology executives and policymakers. The conference, themed "Global Broadband/ Global Challenges," will take place at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Jan. 19-23.

As senior vice president of technology at CBS, Flaherty is responsible for its broadcasting technology. He began work on the global production standard for HDTV in the mid-1980s.

Lee is responsible for corporate research and development activities at Korea Telecom, which is expanding its business to global markets.

Briggs oversees WorldCom's global data network. He was formerly its chief technology officer and was named one of the Top 25 most influential CTOs by Info World Magazine.

For more information on the council or the conference, visit www.ptc.org.

Maui real estate board adopts new name

The Maui Board of Realtors has changed its name to Realtors Association of Maui Inc.

The professional organization has more than 1,100 members and is affiliated with the National Association of Realtors. For more information visit www.mauiboard.com or call (808) 873-8585.

Federal grant to aid Hawaii agribusiness

A $485,046 U.S. Department of Commerce grant given to two University of Hawaii colleges will be used to help the state's agricultural businesses.

The grant will be shared by the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, and the College of Business Administration. It will be used to manage and expand the Department of Commerce's Manufacturing Extension Program in Hawaii. The extension program, which has so far provided assistance in the manufacturing sector, will become a part of a new business development partnership created by the UH and will be expanded to include agribusiness.

The manufacturing extension program, which has been in existence for five years, is part of a nationwide network of more than 70 nonprofit centers that provide small and medium-size businesses with help in areas such as marketing and business development, strategic planning, product development and technology.

MAINLAND

Knighted Greenspan won't go by Sir Alan

Washington >> Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan will receive an honorary knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II, the Fed said.

Greenspan was cited for "his outstanding contribution to global economic stability." He will receive the award when he next visits the U.K. The Fed chairman will be entitled to place the letters KBE after his name upon admission to the British Orders of Chivalry. As an American, however, he won't use the title "Sir Alan."

Congress wants more records from Stewart

Washington >> Martha Stewart and her Merrill Lynch & Co. stockbroker will be asked by a congressional panel for more records about her sale of ImClone Systems Inc. shares before U.S. regulators rejected the company's cancer drug.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee will send letters today to Stewart, the founder of media and retail company Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc., and her broker, Peter Bacanovic, committee spokesman Ken Johnson said. He declined to identify the specific information being sought.