Retire

TXU last week said that its TXU Energy subsidiary will retire eight power plant units due to electric industry market conditions in Texas and will also temporarily close four other units and place them under evaluation for retirement. The 12 units represent a total of 1,471 MW, or more than 13% of TXU Energy’s gas-fired generation capacity in Texas.

Jon L. Thompson, president, ExxonMobil Exploration Co., and vice president, Exxon Mobil Corp., will retire on May 31 after more than 41 years of service. The board of directors is expected to elect A. T. (Tim) Cejka as president of ExxonMobil Exploration and elect him a vice president effective June 1. Cejka is currently an executive vice president of ExxonMobil Exploration. J.L. (Johnny) Hall, currently vice president, Geoscience, ExxonMobil Development Co., also will become an executive vice president of ExxonMobil Exploration effective June 1. Thompson, 65, assumed his current position in December 1999. Before the merger of Exxon and Mobil, Thompson had been president of ExxonMobil Exploration since 1991.

Rep. W.J. “Billy” Tauzin (R-LA) informed the House leadership last Tuesday that he will retire from Congress by the close of the year, ending his nearly 24-year career on Capitol Hill, and will relinquish his position as chairman of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee effective Feb. 16.

Rep. W.J. “Billy” Tauzin (R-LA) informed the House leadership Tuesday that he will retire from Congress by the close of the year, ending his nearly 24-year career on Capitol Hill, and will relinquish his position as chairman of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee effective Feb. 16.

Jerald V. Halvorsen, who has served as president of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) since 1987, will retire effective Aug. 1st of this year, association Chairman Fred Fowler said. Halvorsen will be replaced by Don Santa, who is currently serving as INGAA Executive Vice President. Santa, a former commissioner of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, joined the INGAA management group with the understanding he would be succeeding Halvorsen (see Daily GPI Oct. 17, 2002).

El Paso Corp. shares rebounded 22% on Friday to $4.19 after bottoming out at Thursday’s low of $3.33. On Wednesday, it was in the unenviable position of being the most heavily traded common stock on the New York Stock Exchange because investors were dumping shares in buckets following the announcement that CEO William Wise would step down as chairman at the end of the year and hand over his title of CEO as soon as the board could find a replacement.

Williams announced that CFO Jack McCarthy, 59, will retire at the end of the year. McCarthy will provide the company with consulting services to assist in the transition of a few critical areas. He served the past 10 of his 16 years with Williams in the CFO position. “Jack has made significant contributions to the company during his tenure and we wish him well in his retirement,” said CEO Steve Malcolm. “We are taking steps to ensure a smooth transition of this important role in our company.” Williams expects in the first quarter to name its new CFO. The company’s selection process will identify and evaluate candidates both within Williams and outside the company. The company’s controller and chief accounting officer, Gary Belitz, will be the interim successor to McCarthy.

El Paso Corp. said Monday that Britton White Jr. will retire as executive vice president and general counsel effective Dec. 31. He was appointed to the position following El Paso’s acquisition of Tenneco Energy in 1996. Prior to this, he served as senior vice president and general counsel of El Paso Natural Gas. To succeed White, the company named Peggy A. Heeg as executive vice president and general counsel. She previously served as senior vice president and deputy general counsel responsible for managing legal activities for many of El Paso’s business units. Heeg has led initiatives related to El Paso’s mergers and has managed numerous regulatory, administrative and judicial proceedings principally related to natural resources and energy issues. She also joined El Paso with Tenneco Energy in 1990.

ChevronTexaco Corp. announced Friday that Vice Chairman Richard Matzke will retire early next year after more than 40 years of service. Matzke will be succeeded by Peter Robertson, currently vice president of ChevronTexaco and president of ChevronTexaco Overseas Petroleum (CTOP). Additionally, George Kirkland, currently vice president of ChevronTexaco and president of ChevronTexaco North America Exploration and Production (CTNAEP), will succeed Robertson as president of CTOP. Ray Wilcox, currently managing director of ChevronTexaco’s Nigeria/Mid-Africa Strategic Business Unit, will succeed Kirkland as president of CTNAEP. Wilcox will also become a vice president of ChevronTexaco. Matzke joined Chevron in 1961 as a geologist in Louisiana and over the years advanced through a number of executive positions. He was elected a director of Chevron in 1997, and vice chairman of the board in January 2000. Robertson, who joined Chevron in 1973, became a vice president of Chevron Corp., responsible for strategic planning, in 1994. He became president of Chevron U.S.A. Production Co. from 1997 until assuming his current position.