The Pasha Group of Corte Madera, Calif., said yesterday it is attempting to start interisland services in Hawaii due to multiple requests from customers here.

Pasha Hawaii filed an application to launch the services with the state Public Utilities Commission in March. Its proposed service would create competition with Young Bros. by providing a regularly scheduled service in an enclosed ship between Honolulu, Kahului and Hilo.

Pasha Hawaii says it invested more than $100 million in building the 579-foot Jean Anne before launching its automobile shipping service in 2005 between San Diego and Honolulu.

Pasha says the Jean Anne is equipped to carry rolling stock of any kind, particularly oversize or overweight cargo, in its fully enclosed decks.

Pasha, which has about 250 employees for its Hawaii and West Coast offices, said it will not be requesting any funding or port modifications from the state Department of Transportation.

Because the Jean Anne is a vessel rather than a barge, it can't call at some smaller ports in Hawaii, and because of that, Pasha intends to continue using Young Bros. to carry cargo to those ports.

Young Bros., which has provided interisland shipping in Hawaii for the last 110 years, filed an objection to Pasha Hawaii's application earlier this week, saying its proposal was not on a level playing field because Pasha only planned to service select routes.

Young Bros., a subsidiary of Saltchuk Resources of Seattle, has about 360 employees.