People (May 2011)
Entergy Corp. names vice president of federal governmental affairs; Black Hills fills two executive positions; plus senior staff changes at Alliant Energy, First Wind, UniSource Energy, Consumers Energy, Midwest ISO, and others.
Alliant
Vendor Neutral
(April 2011) GE Hitachi and Lockheed Martin team up on nuclear reactor controls; Elster wins metering contract in New Hampshire; Xcel hires Bechtel for nuclear services in Minnesota; Mitsubishi builds transformer HQ in Memphis; Northeast Utilities taps Siemens for transmission projects; Iberdrola sells wind output to FirstEnergy; Consumers and DTE invest $400 million to upgrade pumped storage facility; plus contracts and announcements from Alstom, URS, Areva, groSolar, Pattern Energy, S&C Electric and others.
People (December 2010)
Steven Specker joins Southern Company board; Chesapeake Utilities names Michael McMasters CEO; Ethics inquiry leads to dismissals and new president at Duke Indiana; plus executive management announcements at American Transmission, Oncor, FirstEnergy, Alliant, NYISO, Gridwise Alliance, the Organization of MISO States, and more ...
People (February 2010)
Iberdrola USA announced that Kevin Walker joined the company as chief operating officer. Mark Lynch is named president of subsidiaries New York State Electric & Gas and Rochester Gas and Electric. Alliant Energy promoted Patricia Kampling to executive v.p., CFO and treasurer. John Larson is promoted to senior v.p.-generation, with more responsibilities involving generation-related duties. And more...
People (January 2010)
Xcel Energy announced that David L. Eves is the new president and CEO of Public Service Co. of Colorado (PSCo), a subsidiary. Riley Hill succeeded Eves as president and CEO of SPS. Reliant Energy appointed Tom Gros as senior v.p. of sales. CH Energy Group promoted James P. Laurito to executive v.p. of the holding company and its subsidiary, Central Hudson Gas & Electric. Oncor Electric Delivery promoted Charles Jenkins to COO. And more...
The Fortnightly 40
The 40 Best Energy Companies
(September 2009) The industry’s best companies are weathering the financial storm reasonably well, with the F40 delivering equity returns in the 14-percent range for fiscal 2008. However, falling sales and rising costs are putting heavy pressure on balance sheets—and on regulatory relationships. Companies that balance customer value and shareholder value will be most likely to thrive in the new normal.
PV's Promise
Chris O’Brien is no starry-eyed idealist. An engineer with an MBA, he began his career developing fossil-fired power plants for the AES Corp. But in the 1990s his career took a different turn, when he launched the Energy Star program for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. After that, he went into the solar energy business, and never has looked back.
People (February 2009)
Portland General Electric (PGE) announced Maria M. Pope as senior v.p. of finance, CFO and treasurer. Hawaiian Electric Co. named Richard M. Rosenblum president and CEO. UniSource Energy named Paul J. Bonavia as its chairman, president and CEO. Midwest ISO announced John H. Bear, currently president and COO, will succeed T. Graham Edwards as CEO. And others...
The Pulse of a Utility
The market-to-book ratio is a vital sign of a utility’s health.
Like a physician with her stethoscope at the outset of a check-up, astute shareholders and directors should use the level and trend of a utility’s market-to-book ratio (MtB) as one of the first vital signs they monitor and as an ongoing and leading measure of a utility’s strategic health.
Green Price Stability
New approaches account for the economic benefits of renewables.
Many green power customers benefit from long-term fixed prices. The most effective programs recognize the value of this price hedge—and fairly exempt customers from fuel cost adders in utility rates.