Jimmy Glotfelty said Dec. 4 he will resign from the Texas Public Utility Commission at year’s end, leaving the regulator two short of a full complement.
In a letter to Gov. Greg Abbott, Glotfelty offered his resignation, effective Dec. 31, saying it has been “an honor and privilege to serve the people of Texas” as a commissioner. Also leaving at the same time will be Lori Cobos, who announced her resignation in November. (See Texas PUC’s Cobos to Leave Commission.)
Asked to elaborate on his decision, Glotfelty told RTO Insider, “Just time to go build some infrastructure and nuclear plants in Texas. You cannot do that inside the government.”
Glotfelty chaired Texas’ Advanced Nuclear Reactor Working Group, which wrapped up more than a year’s worth of work in November with a 78-page report meant to ensure Texas is “the energy capital of the world.”
“We hope this is a springboard to greater, bigger, better things in the nuclear space in Texas, and this is just the beginning,” he said as he rolled out the report during the Texas Nuclear Summit. (See Texas Now Wants to be No. 1 in Nuclear Power.)
In his letter, Glotfelty said he was “especially grateful” to lead the nuclear working group and implied that’s where his future will take him.
“We now have a lot of work to do [to] implement its recommendations, and I remain committed to continuing the effort to support the leadership on this issue,” he wrote.
Glotfelty told Abbott he was “proud of the work we have accomplished to address the challenges that face the Texas electric system.” He listed efforts to strengthen the ERCOT system after the disastrous 2021 winter storm, expanding the transmission system, developing an aggregated distributed energy resource pilot program, and improving the grid’s reliability.
With the departures of Glotfelty and Cobos, the PUC will begin the new year with only three commissioners, two short of a full slate.
Abbott appointed Glotfelty to the PUC in 2021. His term expired in September, but he has continued to serve at the governor’s pleasure.
Glotfelty brought a long career in the energy industry to the PUC, including leadership roles with Calpine, ICF Consulting and Quanta Services. He was a founder and executive vice president at transmission developer Clean Line Energy and founded and led the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity. Glotfelty served as policy adviser and legislative directors for several political figures, including DOE Secretary Spencer Abraham, Texas Gov. George W. Bush and U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson (R).
