ERCOT announced Jan. 27 that it filled two vacancies on its Board of Directors, bringing it to a full complement of eight independent members.

The Texas grid operator said its Board Selection Committee tabbed Alex Hernandez and Sig Cornelius to serve three-year terms, effective immediately. They replace former Chair Paul Foster and Director Bob Flexon, both of whom left in 2024. (See ERCOT Board Chair Foster Steps Down.)

Hernandez is the founder and CEO of Cumulus Data, the first hyperscale data center platform directly connected to carbon-free nuclear power. He brings with him 20 years of experience in business formation, operations, executive leadership and strategic advisory roles, most recently serving as Talen Energy’s CEO. Hernandez also served as TerraForm Power’s CFO, a board member for the Nuclear Energy Institute’s Executive Committee and a managing director at Goldman Sachs.

He holds bachelor’s degrees in economics from both Rice University and the London School of Economics, and an MBA from Columbia University.

Cornelius has spent 45 years in several senior management positions, most recently as president of Freeport LNG Development. Previously, he was with ConocoPhillips, retiring as CFO in 2010.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University and master’s degrees from both Purdue University and Stanford University.

The ERCOT board includes four ex officio and nonvoting members to provide an in-person sounding board for member companies: the CEO of ERCOT, the public counsel of the Texas Office of Public Utility Counsel, the chair of the Public Utility Commission and a PUC commissioner designated by the PUC chair.

All board members are from Texas, a change made after the February 2021 winter storm.