HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In conjunction with the transition of Jack Fusco to Executive Chairman and Thad Hill to Chief Executive Officer, Calpine Corporation (NYSE:CPN) is pleased to announce changes in the responsibilities of certain leaders on the executive team and as well as promotions for key leaders in our Commercial Operations organization.
Executive Vice President Steve Pruett has been named Chief Commercial Officer and is responsible for Trading, Origination, Development and Commercial Analytics. He has led our Commercial Operations team since joining Calpine in June 2011. Mr. Pruett was named Executive Vice President in January 2014 and previously served as Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations.
Senior Vice President Hether Benjamin Brown has been named Chief Administrative Officer with responsibility for Human Resources, Information Technology Services, Change Management and Facilities. She previously served as Calpine’s Senior Vice President of Human Resources beginning in February 2012. Ms. Benjamin Brown joined Calpine in May 2009 as Vice President of Supply Chain Services.
“With Jack stepping into the Executive Chairman’s role and my assumption of duties as CEO, we have eliminated the Chief Operating Officer position and are reassigning some of those duties to Steve and Hether,” Mr. Hill said. “We have been fortunate to retain a strong bench of senior leaders. These changes, as well as the promotions in Commercial Operations we are announcing today, not only allow us to recognize the contributions of these leaders to Calpine’s success, they will allow us to continue to develop talent from within as a part of future succession planning.”
The following leaders in Commercial Operations will take on expanded roles and have been promoted to Senior Vice President, reporting directly to Mr. Pruett:
- Alex Makler will become Senior Vice President, West Region and will lead origination, development and strategy for the West Region. He previously served as Calpine’s Vice President of Strategic Origination and Development for our West Region from January 2009 to May 2014 and as Vice President and Assistant General Counsel in the Company’s legal department, where he began working in 1999.
- Andrew Novotny will become Senior Vice President, Trading. Andrew joined Calpine in April 2012 as Vice President, Power Trading, and leads the asset portfolio trading teams, which include power and gas trading and logistics.
- Caleb Stephenson will become Senior Vice President, Commercial Analytics. Mr. Stephenson joined Calpine as Vice President, Commercial Analytics, in October 2008, prior to which he was extensively involved in the restructuring of Calpine while working for a consultant. He will continue to oversee the commodity analytic groups including Commodity Margin Analytics, Dispatch Analytics, Operations Reporting, Transaction Analysis and Calpine’s Rotational Program and will gain responsibility for Commercial Information Systems.
- Todd Thornton was named Senior Vice President of Origination and Development. Mr. Thornton now leads origination and development activities throughout our central and eastern regions. A 14-year Calpine veteran, Mr. Thornton has been Vice President, Commercial Development, since January 2013, before which he was the Company’s Vice President, Finance and Treasurer, for four years.
About Calpine
Calpine Corporation generates more electricity than any other independent power producer in America, with a fleet of 94 power plants in operation or under construction, representing more than 29,000 megawatts of generation capacity. Serving customers in 20 states and Canada, we specialize in developing, constructing, owning and operating natural gas-fired and renewable geothermal power plants that use advanced technologies to generate power in a low-carbon and environmentally responsible manner. Our clean, efficient, modern and flexible fleet is uniquely positioned to benefit from the secular trends affecting our industry, including the abundant and affordable supply of clean natural gas, stricter environmental regulation, aging power generation infrastructure and the increasing need for dispatchable power plants to successfully integrate intermittent renewables into the grid. We focus on competitive wholesale power markets and advocate for market-driven solutions that result in nondiscriminatory forward price signals for investors. Please visit www.calpine.com to learn more about why Calpine is a generation ahead – today.
Forward-Looking Information
In addition to historical information, this release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Words such as “believe,” “intend,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “estimate,” “potential,” “project” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Such statements include, among others, those concerning expected financial performance and strategic and operational plans, as well as assumptions, expectations, predictions, intentions or beliefs about future events. You are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and that a number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Please see the risks identified in this release or in Calpine’s reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, without limitation, the risk factors identified in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2013. These filings are available by visiting the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website at www.sec.gov or Calpine’s website at www.calpine.com. Given the risks and uncertainties surrounding forward-looking statements, you should not place undue reliance on these statements. Many of these factors are beyond our ability to control or predict. Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. Actual results or developments may differ materially from the expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, and, other than as required by law, Calpine undertakes no obligation to update any such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.