Mary Kipp of El Paso Electric named Chair to SEPA Board

First sitting utility president to serve in position

Washington, D.C. – The Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) has announced the results of recent officer elections for the nonprofit’s Board of Directors.

Mary Kipp, President and CEO of El Paso Electric (EPE), will be the Board’s new Chair for a one-year term, becoming the first sitting utility president and CEO to serve as Chair of the SEPA Board. Jim Alberts, Senior Vice President of Business Development and Strategy at Hawaiian Electric Co., will become Chair-Elect.

“Thanks to the diverse industry experience and leadership of SEPA’s Board of Directors, we have recently adopted a bold new vision — carbon-free energy system by 2050 — and four areas of focus to facilitate a smart transition to a clean and modern energy future,” said SEPA President and CEO Julia Hamm. “Our board continues to reflect the scope of change happening  in all aspects of our industry.”

“At El Paso Electric we consider the environment to be an important stakeholder in the decisions we make, and I look forward to building on this vision with my fellow industry thought leaders on the SEPA Board and its leadership,” said Mary Kipp, EPE President and CEO. “To continue the ongoing power industry transformation, we must remain engaged with organizations, like SEPA, who share in our common goal of moving our world towards a carbon-free future.“

SEPA’s Board of Directors helps guide the development of SEPA’s mission to facilitate the electric power sector’s transition to a clean and modern energy future. The SEPA Board of Directors is comprised of 18 members representing a cross-section of energy industry representatives, including executives from utilities, distributed energy technology developers, and former policymakers.

Full bios for all SEPA Board members are available here.

About SEPA

The Smart Electric Power Alliance (SEPA) is an educational nonprofit working to facilitate the electric power industry’s smart transition to a clean and modern energy future through education, research, standards and collaboration. SEPA offers a range of research initiatives and resources, as well as conferences, educational events, advisory services, and professional networking opportunities. SEPA is founder and co-sponsor of Solar Power International (now North American Smart Energy Week) and winner of the Keystone Policy Center’s 2016 Leadership in Energy Award. For more information, visit www.sepapower.org. 

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