Utility stocks historically have been a safe haven, a stable, long-term investment for widows and orphans. However, with banks collapsing and the economy falling into a recession, utility stocks as a whole recently have performed poorly, with our portfolio of 75 companies losing $200 billion in market value in 2008.

(January 2009) El Paso Electric (EPE) selected David W. Stevens as CEO. DPL Inc. promoted Frederick J. Boyle to senior vice president, CFO and treasurer of DPL and its principal subsidiary, The Dayton Power and Light Co. Great Plains Energy named Todd Kobayashi v.p., strategy and risk management. Consumers Energy promoted Richard J. Ford to vice president of energy delivery. And others...

Utility CEOs debate the merits of a retail surcharge to fund clean-tech R&D.

(Octover 2008) Xcel Energy named David Sparby president and CEO of Northern States Power Minnesota. Entergy Corp. appointed Terence Burke general counsel and chief legal officer for EquaGen, the joint venture operating company to be owned 50 percent by Entergy and 50 percent by Enexus Energy. Steven Agresta was named executive vice president, general counsel and chief legal officer for Enexus Energy. NorthWestern Energy appointed Robert C. Rowe as president and CEO. And others...

Low-carbon and “green” strategies have begun delivering returns for utility shareholders. Whether a company ultimately wins or loses depends on how markets are pricing the risks of possible carbon-control regimes.

To the casual observer, the Iatan 2 power plant under construction in Platte County. Mo., is simply another coal-fired facility. However, when viewed by a utility executive facing seemingly non-stop global-warming headlines and news broadcasts, the 850 MW Iatan 2 looks more like a new regulatory and business model for building coal burners.

Seven CEOs—from Exelon, Great Plains Energy, National Grid, NRG Energy, Duke Energy, FPL Group, Great River Energy—explain how global warming is affecting their customers, shareholders, and employees.

(June 2006) Mirant Corp. appointed Jose (Joey) P. Leviste Jr. as chairman, president, and CEO of Mirant Philippines, and as a senior vice president of Mirant Corp. Ian C. Connor joined Goldman Sachs in 2006 as a managing director in its Power & Energy Group. Unitil Corp. shareholders elected Robert G. Schoenberger, Charles H. Tenney III, and Dr. Sarah P. Voll to its board of directors. Piedmont Natural Gas announced several changes in the company’s executive management team.

In the near future, the majority of investor-owned electric utilities will request, and ultimately win, rate increases. What can utilities do to alter consumer perceptions of higher bills?

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New Opportunities:

Exelon appointed Tom Ridge and Dr. William C. Richardson to its board of directors. Ridge is the former Secretary of the United States Department of Homeland Security and a former governor of Pennsylvania. Richardson is president and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and was previously president of The Johns Hopkins University.