"[2] Whitefish Energy Holdings LLC was founded in 2015 by Andy Techmanski, a former lineman with more than twenty years of experience in the electric power industry.
[10] A third reason for labeling the contract as unusual was that PREPA chose Whitefish rather than using their mutual aid agreements with mainland utilities.
[11] PREPA's emergency fund had only $100 million, which Ramos believed would be quickly exhausted if he hired another public utility to assist with repairs.
[12] Furthermore, PREPA's mutual aid agreements required the utility company to undertake the logistics of housing workers and transporting materials to the island, while Whitefish's contract did not.
Moreover, their primary investor, HBC Investments, was founded by Joe Colonnetta, a "prominent donor" of incumbent U.S. President Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign.
[5] Techmanski also admitted that he had been in touch with Zinke in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria to try to free up more resources since getting crews and equipment to Puerto Rico had been difficult.
[5][26][27][28] According to a November 12, 2017, New York Times article, Whitefish Energy had hired contract workers, electricians from Florida, to do the work.
[2] A Whitefish spokesman said that the higher contract prices were due to overhead costs, adding that the company had to pay a premium to entice workers to come to Puerto Rico, and that many workers received overtime pay for every hour worked, with overtime rates influenced by many factors.
[31] Cruiseline French America Line claimed to be working with Whitefish Energy, and that their boat the Louisiane would serve as "headquarters for relief services" after Hurricane Maria.