EPRI Elects New Chairs, Board Members

Palo Alto, Calif. (April 13, 2022) -Today, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) announced the 2022 election results of its Board of Directors, effective immediately.

For the second consecutive year, Stanley W. (Stan) Connally, Jr., Southern Company’s executive vice president of Operations, and chairman, president, and CEO of its Southern Company Services (SCS) subsidiary, has been appointed to serve as chair of EPRI’s Board of Directors. His second term runs through April 2023.

“I’m honored to continue serving as EPRI’s chair,” said Connally. “I’m proud of EPRI’s success over the last 50 years in bringing together industry leaders, including Southern Company, to collaborate and deliver the technology, solutions, and thought leadership shaping the future of energy.”

Maria M. Pope, president and CEO of Portland General Electric (PGE), will become Board First Vice Chair, and Lisa M. Barton, executive vice president and chief operating officer of American Electric Power (AEP), will be the new Board Second Vice Chair.

“As we celebrate our 50th anniversary, I am thankful for the guidance that Stan, Maria, Lisa, and other Board members will continue to provide EPRI as we innovate and expand our engagement throughout the clean energy transformation,” said EPRI President and CEO Arshad Mansoor. “This deep backbench of knowledge and leadership will be essential as we lay the groundwork for the next 50 years, collaborating with key energy stakeholders around the globe to ensure the public has clean, safe, reliable, affordable, and equitable access to electricity.”

Connally oversees Southern Company’s systemwide operations. This includes generation, transmission, engineering and construction services, commercial operations, supply chain management, system planning and environmental affairs, as well as Southern Wholesale Energy and the company’s Southern Linc and Southern Telecom telecommunications businesses. As CEO of SCS, he is responsible for its primary shared-services activities, administration functions and budget management for SCS, as well as for ensuring the alignment of information technology and operations functions to create strategies that deliver increased value to customers. Previously, he served as chairman, president, and CEO of Southern Company subsidiary Gulf Power from 2012 through 2018. Connally joined Southern Company in 1989.

Connally has been a member of EPRI’s Board since 2017, serving on the Executive Committee and the Compensation and Leadership Development Committee. He is currently the lead independent director of Capital City Bank Group’s Board, serves on its Audit Committee and is immediate past chair of its Governance and Nominating Committee.

In addition to president and CEO, Pope is a member of PGE’s board of directors. She joined PGE in 2009 as chief financial officer and treasurer. She went on to oversee the company’s power generation facilities, wholesale power marketing and long-term resource strategy as senior vice president of Power Supply, Operations and Resource Strategy. Prior to PGE, she was chief financial officer of Mentor Graphics Corporation, and has served on EPRI’s board since 2019.

As COO, Barton oversees American Electric Power’s systemwide operations, including generation, nuclear operations, energy delivery, supply chain, utility operations, grid solutions, safety and health and the company’s regulated renewable development functions. Since joining AEP, Barton has held several executive positions including EVP Utilities, EVP Transmission and SVP Transmission Strategy & Business Development, where she led the company’s transco and joint venture development activities. She has served the industry in various leadership roles at Northeast Utilities, Ransmeier & Spellman P.C., and Strategic Energy LLC.

An additional three directors were elected by the Board, beginning four-year terms: Matthew Ketschke, president of Consolidated Edison Co. of New York, John Larsen, chair, president and CEO of Alliant Energy Corporation, and Brian Savoy, executive vice president and chief strategy and commercial officer of Duke Energy.