PG&E Corp. named a nearly new board of directors Wednesday to guide the troubled utility after it emerges from bankruptcy, probably later this month.
Eleven new board members will join three current members. The boards of parent PG&E Corp. and utility subsidiary Pacific Gas and Electric will be largely the same, PG&E said in a news release.
The new board members include Mike Niggli, a 13-year veteran of Sempra Energy, who served as president of San Diego Gas & Electric from 2010 to 2013; Craig Fugate, the administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from 2009 to 2017; and retired Admiral Mark Ferguson, former commander of U.S. Navy forces in Europe and Africa.
Among those departing will be PG&E Chair Nora Mead Brownell, a former FERC commissioner and Pennsylvania utility regulator. Kristine Schmidt, a former member of CAISO’s Western Energy Imbalance Market Governing Body, who was an adviser to Brownell at FERC, will also be leaving.
The board shakeup is intended to meet the demands of Gov. Gavin Newsom and California Public Utilities Commission President Marybel Batjer to appoint a board of directors with more Californians and greater safety expertise. (See PG&E Tries to Appease Governor with New Plan.)
“Putting in place a new board is a critical component of PG&E’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy as a reimagined utility — one that is in touch with its customers and communities and is safe, reliable, financially stable and capable of helping California meet its energy goals,” Brownell said in a statement.
PG&E CEO Bill Johnson previously announced he’ll retire June 30 — the deadline for PG&E to exit bankruptcy and participate in a state wildfire insurance fund. Remaining board member Bill Smith will serve as acting CEO until Johnson’s replacement is named.
Liabilities from two years of massive wildfires sparked by its equipment drove PG&E to seek bankruptcy protection in January 2019.
The utility’s lawyers made their closing arguments in the bankruptcy case Monday, and U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Dennis Montali is expected soon to rule on whether to accept or reject PG&E’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan. (See Lawyers Close PG&E Bankruptcy Case.)