Retired

Bellevue, WA-based Puget Sound Energy (PSE) has named Kimberly Harris as its new CEO, replacing Steve Reynolds who retired. Harris joined PSE 12 years ago.

With CEO Steve Baum officially retired on Wednesday, and a new three-person senior management team from within the company, Sempra Energy expects to stay its current course, including timely sales of assets, continued development of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and related facilities, along with holding on to its so-far successful trading operation, Sempra’s new CFO, Mark Snell, told a session at the Credit Suisse Energy Summit Tuesday in Vail, CO.

With CEO Steve Baum officially retired on Wednesday, and a new three-person senior management team from within the company, Sempra Energy expects to stay its current course, including timely sales of assets, continued development of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and related facilities, along with holding on to its so-far successful trading operation, Sempra’s new CFO, Mark Snell, told a session at the Credit Suisse Energy Summit Tuesday in Vail, CO.

Jerome “Jerry” James McGrath, 81, a retired former president of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA), died on Tuesday of cancer at his home in Chevy Chase, MD. McGrath served as an executive with INGAA for 20 years. After an extensive career as a natural gas industry lawyer, he was employed by INGAA in 1968 as executive vice president, general counsel and secretary. In 1978, he was promoted to president and served in the capacity until his retirement from the association in 1988. His tenure included leading INGAA and its interstate pipeline members through the challenges associated with the wellhead decontrol of natural gas and the beginnings of the pipeline industry’s transition from merchant sellers of natural gas to unbundled transportation providers. Mirant announced that effective May 3 M. Michele Burns, 46, will be joining the company as executive vice president and CFO. Burns will assume lead responsibility for the company’s financial restructuring. She will report to Marce Fuller, Mirant’s CEO. Burns brings more than 23 years of experience in corporate finance and accounting to Mirant, having served as executive vice president and CFO at Delta Air Lines and as partner at Arthur Andersen LLP. “As one of the nation’s most well-respected CFOs, she has the experience and skill to lead our financial restructuring, and play a key role in enabling Mirant to emerge from Chapter 11,” said Fuller. In her career at Delta, Burns is credited with stabilizing the company’s finances immediately after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, then leveraging Delta’s business unit, technology and supply chain strategies to reduce costs by over $2.5 billion.

Legal action against a just-retired state regulator, Henry Duque, ended last week when the California Supreme Court refused to take an appeal by the former commissioner’s opponents. However, the court roadblock prompted a powerful state legislator to propose a new law that in the future would automatically toss out a regulator caught voluntarily buying stock in a company that he or she regulated.

Legal action against a just-retired state regulator, Henry Duque, ended last week when the California Supreme Court refused to take an appeal by the former commissioner’s opponents, but the court roadblock prompted a powerful state legislator to propose a new law that in the future would automatically toss out a regulator caught voluntarily buying stock in a company that he or she regulated.

The just-retired former two-time president of the California Public Utilities Commission, Richard Bilas, sounded off Monday on the lack of political independence at the five-member state regulatory panel and a host of energy issues in the state that he thinks are not likely to get the nonpartisan leadership needed to resolve them. In an interview with NGI, Bilas said a little-recognized state law passed in 1999 (SB 33) “politicized” the CPUC to an extent never before seen, and that is “not good” for consumers or utilities.

The just-retired former two-time president of the California Public Utilities Commission, Richard Bilas, sounded off Monday on the lack of political independence at the five-member state regulatory panel and a host of energy issues in the state that he thinks are not likely to get the nonpartisan leadership needed to resolve them. In an interview with NGI, Bilas said a little-recognized state law passed in 1999 (SB 33) “politicized” the CPUC to an extent never before seen, and that is “not good” for consumers or utilities.

U.S. Northeast gas demand would increase by 4.4 Bcf/d ifproposed environmental regulations are implemented as planned andnuclear capacity is retired, according to a recent study by WEFAtitled Northeast Gas Markets: Opportunities and Risks. The studyevaluates the Northeast gas market under a number of scenarios. Itinvestigates the impact of environmental regulations, nuclearretirements, electricity demand growth, and pipeline capacityadditions on prices and gas demand in the U.S. Northeast.