The Williams Companies Inc. board has appointed Stephen W. Bergstrom, Scott D. Sheffield and William H. Spence as independent directors who will stand for election at the annual meeting on Nov. 23. During his tenure as president and CEO of American Midstream Partners, Bergstrom established a strong platform and led the company through a period of substantial growth, Williams said. Sheffield is chairman and CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources. Under his leadership, Pioneer has grown from a $32 million company in 1985 to a more than $30 billion company today, Williams said. Spence has led PPL Corp., one of the largest companies in the U.S. utility sector, has expertise in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, stockholder relations, industry and regulatory matters and corporate strategy. An activist investor has mounted a proxy fight to place a slate of directors on the Williams board (see Daily GPI, Aug. 22).

Meg A. Gentle, Cheniere Energy Inc. executive vice president of marketing, has left the company, Cheniere disclosed in a regulatory filing. Gentle previously served as CFO from March 2009 to June 2013. Prior to 2009, she served in various senior roles in strategic planning and finance. Before joining Cheniere in June 2004, Gentle spent eight years in energy market development, economic evaluation, and long-range planning. She conducted international business development and strategic planning for Anadarko Petroleum Corp. from January 1998 to May 2004 and energy market analysis for Pace Global Energy Services, an energy management and consulting firm, from August 1996 to December 1998.