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The 2005 Global Energy Awards

The Roosevelt Hotel in New York City was the site of the 2005 Platts Global Energy Awards (GEA). The seventh annual black-tie soiree was the most global ever. Some 400 top executives from more than two dozen countries on five continents gathered at the Roosevelt on December 1, 2005, to honor the energy industry’s "Best of the Best."

The event, supported by principal sponsor Capgemini, along with co-sponsors HP, Intel, and Pace Global Energy Services, recognizes excellence in the global energy industry. Additional support comes from BusinessWeek magazine and J.D. Power and Associates, which, like Platts, are businesses of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

The awards ceremony celebrated the extraordinary accomplishments of businesses and individuals in several energy-related fields and categories. This year’s finalists and winners displayed true innovative spirit and enduring commitment to employees, customers, shareholders, and the industry as a whole. Also announced at the GEA were the winners of POWER magazine’s 2005 Plant of the Year Award—Southern California Public Power Authority’s Magnolia Power Project—and the 2005 Marmaduke Award for excellence in plant operations and maintenance—TransAlta’s Sundance Power Plant. Ken Wicker of POWER presented the awards to top executives of the two companies.

 

Leadership spurs growth

In her remarks, Platts President Victoria Pao, host of this year’s event, said that the success of the energy industry in 2005 was due to exceptional leadership strategies whose goals aren’t limited to attractive quarterly results. "The winners," Pao commented, "embody a true spirit of innovation and courage. They are the companies and individuals who are building the future of our economies, our societies, and our environment."

Pao went on to point out that big profits earned by many of 2005’s winning companies bring added duties. "The challenge of meeting the world’s future energy needs in a sustainable way; managing reinvestment to ensure stable future sources of supply; and helping economies around the world cope with a new, and potentially permanent, energy paradigm is a tremendous responsibility."

The 2005 GEA winners were chosen by an international panel of judges (see box) representing the energy industry’s elite—top corporate executives, leading academics, respected commentators, and senior analysts. The judges chose the winners from nearly 200 nominees in the various categories. The 2005 Platts Global Energy Award winners are:

* CEO of the Year: Phillip G. Harris, PJM Interconnection (USA)

* Coal Company of the Year: Foundation Coal Holdings Inc. (USA)

* Community Development Program of the Year: National Thermal Power Corp. (India)

* Downstream Business of the Year: Gazpromexport (Russia) and World Energy Alternatives LLC (USA)

* Energy Company of the Year: ExxonMobil (USA)

* Energy Engineering Project of the Year: Tennessee Valley Authority (USA)

* Energy Investor of the Year: Iberdrola (Spain)

* Exploration and Production Business of the Year: Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (USA)

* Industry Leadership Award: GAIL (India) Ltd. (India)

* Lifetime Achievement Award: Andre Merlin, RTE Energy Inc. (France)

* Marketing Campaign of the Year: Southern California Edison Co. (USA)

* Most Innovative Commercial Technology of the Year: ExxonMobil (USA)

* Power Company of the Year: Iberdrola (Spain)

* Renewables Project of the Year: MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co. (USA)

* Rising Star Award: Excelerate Energy LP (USA)

For more information on the winners and finalists, as well as the criteria for judging, visit www.globalenergyawards.com. The call for nominations for the 2006 Global Energy Awards begins June 1, 2006.


Courtesy: Platts

The award for Renewables Project of the Year has come a long way since its debut. In the late 1990s, it was difficult to find a business prepared to take a commercial stake in renewables. That is no longer the case. This year’s winner, MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co., was recognized by the judges for completing a 257-turbine wind farm in Iowa with a capacity of 489 MW. Tom Budler, wind project manager at MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co., accepted the award.

 


Source: Platts

The Power Company of the Year Award went to the Spanish utility Iberdrola, which over the past century has evolved from a small hydroelectricity generator into a $25 billion international company with operations in more than 20 countries. In 2004, Iberdrola became the world’s largest wind energy generator. The company spent $1 billion on renewables generation in 2004 alone and expects to have as much as 4,500 MW of wind power capacity in Spain within three years. Francisco Martinez Corcoles, director of generation at Iberdrola, is pictured.

 


Courtesy: Brenda Lucero

POWER’s 2005 Plant of the Year was Southern California Public Power Authority’s Magnolia Power Project, a 310-MW combined-cycle plant in downtown Burbank, California. Magnolia won for its single-digit ppm emissions of NOx and CO, its use of reclaimed wastewater for cooling and makeup, and its zero liquid discharge system. From left to right are: Dennis Moran, operations manager; Fred Fletcher, assistant project director; Ron Davis, project director; Bill Hutchings, project manager; and Ken Wicker, editor of POWER.

 


Source: Platts

The Coal Company of the Year Award was won by Foundation Coal Holdings Inc., the fifth-largest coal producer in the U.S. Foundation grew its revenues from $995.6 million in 2004 to $635 million over the first six months of 2005, suggesting an annual jump of 27%. Frank Wood, senior vice president and CFO of Foundation Coal Holdings Inc., holds the award.

 


Courtesy: Brenda Lucero

POWER magazine’s Marmaduke Award—named for the fictional plant troubleshooter Marmaduke Surfaceblow, whose exploits have been chronicled in POWER since 1948—recognizes excellece in power plant operations and maintenance. This year’s award went to TransAlta’s Sundance Power Plant in Alberta, Canada. By deploying a plantwide wireless network and sensors, and a condition-based monitoring system, and by extending the reach of its work management system, the Sundance plant has already saved over $10 million. Pictured is Martin Van Huyssteen, director of Alberta Thermal Operations.

 


Source: Platts

The Energy Engineering Project of the Year Award recognizes an achievement that made the world’s energy future more secure and more sustainable. This year’s winner, Tennessee Valley Authority, spearheaded a project to find and implement a way to convert surplus weapons-grade uranium into reactor fuel. From left to right are Mark Fronmuller, VP of Capgemini’s North American Utility Unit, Skila Harris, director of Tennessee Valley Authority, and Ken Wicker of POWER.

 


Courtesy: Brenda Lucero

CEO of the Year is always one of the most hotly contested and highly prized awards, and this year 15 leaders of energy companies were nominated. To win this award, a CEO must have consistently demonstrated the kind of clear vision, judgment, and motivational skills that transform and empower organizations. This year’s winner, Phillip G. Harris, president and CEO of PJM Interconnection, manages a transmission grid that serves 51 million people. Under Harris, PJM ‘s growth has been astonishing. Back in 1997, the company was billing and clearing $750 million a year for its customers. Today that figure is $17 billion, representing deliveries of 700 million MWh.

 

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