California Gov. Jerry Brown named a new commissioner to the five-member California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), Carla Peterman, currently a Brown-appointee on the California Energy Commission (CEC). Separately, the CEC also announced that Brown reappointed Karen Douglas, to the CEC, which is operating with four of its five-member seats currently filled. Peterman succeeds Timothy Alan Simon, whose six-year appointment ends Dec. 31. Simon had been the CPUC natural gas expert and served as chairman of the gas committee at the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. Before joining the CEC in 2011, Peterman served on the board of The Utility Reform Network. Douglas has served on the CEC since 2008 and prior to that was director of California Climate Initiative for the Environmental Defense Fund. Both appointments requires state Senate confirmation.

Jack Fusco, the turnaround CEO specialist, has agreed to extend his contract through 2015 to continue heading Calpine Corp., the independent electric power plant operator that he helped restructure following it emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008 (see Daily GPI, Feb 4, 2008). Fusco will continue as CEO through Calpine’s May 2014 annual shareholders meeting before becoming executive chairman of the Calpine board. In other moves at Calpine, Thad Hill was named president, effective immediately, after serving as COO under Fusco since September 2008. Thad Miller also is extending his contract as executive vice president and chief counsel through 2015. The chair of the Calpine board, J. Stuart Ryan, made the announcements that the company’s senior management coming out of Chapter 11 will continue to lead the company.

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