People

New Opportunities:

Jack Hawks , EPSA's current vice president of public affairs and planning, took on additional responsibilities as EPSA's acting vice president of policy. He replaced Julie Simon , who left the association to join Constellation Energy Group as a managing director. Hawks previously was vice president, Regulatory Policy, for PG&E National Energy Group.

David Barnes joined Commerce Energy as vice president, Finance & Investor Relations. He has more than 20 years of experience in both public and private financial markets.

American Superconductor Corp. named electric power industry expert Terry Winter to the newly created position of executive vice president, Advanced Grid Solutions, to help accelerate the adoption of advanced reactive power compensation solutions in transmission grids. Winter most recently was president and CEO of the California Independent System Operator (ISO).

Former FERC Commissioner James Hoecker UtiliPoint International Inc. became affiliated with Cal Payne , former chief risk officer of Aquila Inc. and president of Cadwallader & Associates LLC, to add capabilities to its trading and risk management consulting services. joined the Washington, D.C., office of Vinson & Elkins LLP as a partner in the energy section.

Law firm Cozen O'Connor announced the formation of its Energy, Environmental & Public Utilities Practice Group. Peter J. Fontaine and Ira G. Megdal will serve as co-chairs of the practice group, and William D. Lavery Jr. , Douglas W. Frankenthaler , and Stacy A. Mitchell will serve as members. Fontaine previously practiced in the firm's environmental regulatory practice group.

Anaheim Public Utilities General Manager Marcie Edwards took an unpaid leave of absence to assume the position of interim CEO of the California ISO. The ISO's board of governors is searching for a permanent replacement for former CEO Terry Winter , who resigned in June.

Shuffle Board:

Northwest Natural Gas Co. selected David H. Anderson to be its new senior vice president and CFO. Anderson replaces Bruce DeBolt , who will retire effective Oct. 1.

FirstEnergy Corp. elected Wes M. Taylor to its board of directors and said John M. Pietruski would retire from the board. Taylor, 61, retired in April 2004 as president of TXU Generation.

The Calpine Foundation elected Peter deCourcy Hero to its board of directors. Hero has served as president of Community Foundation Silicon Valley since 1989.

Retired:

Eric Hirst has announced his retirement after a career that included prominent roles at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Federal Energy Administration, the Minnesota Energy Agency, Puget Power, and the Land and Water Fund.

MDU Resources Group Inc. said Ronald D. Tipton , chief executive officer for Montana-Dakota Utilities Co., Great Plains Natural Gas Co., and Utility Services Inc. would retire Jan. 2, 2005. Tipton has been with MDU Resources companies for more than 20 years.

Awarded:

Catherine Luthin of Luthin Associates Inc. received the 2004 Association of Energy Engineers Energy Service Profession of the Year award during the World Energy Engineering Conference, held in September.

Donna Martin , vice president of human resources at St. Louis-based Ameren Corp., was selected as one of the "Most Influential Business Women for 2004." Sponsored