Nalcor Energy gets interim CEO
Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro president Jennifer Williams to take on dual role
The two worlds of Nalcor Energy and Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro will begin to collide with the announcement Thursday that Hydro president Jennifer Williams will take on the role of interim CEO of Nalcor when current CEO Stan Marshall retires on June 15.
Williams’ combined role will pay about $395,000 per year — upping her current salary, but it’s less take-home pay than what Marshall received during his contract. The move will see base salary savings of $415,000 per year, plus more savings with shortterm incentives and bonuses removed.
“We all have seen the (provincial) budget and what the government will expect of us. We’ve got some significant fiscal realities to face, that’s made very clear,” Williams said Thursday. “I’ve accepted this role with no bonus. I have accepted this role at a reduced salary. Any person who would have taken this role would have had to take it at a reduced salary. We are doing our part here.”
The appointment of Williams is the first step in streamlining Nalcor Energy, but the majority of that work won’t occur until after the Muskrat Falls project is completed and goes online this fall, and is proven to be reliable.
The Holyrood Thermal Generating Station will remain operational — for at least two years — until Muskrat Falls and its power system is assured to be a reliable service.
The Premier’s Economic Recovery Team recommended in its report that Nalcor Energy be eliminated and its components merged into Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro in a phased approach, including the merger of power management, electricity sales, generation and transmission.
Williams said her first job is to finish the Muskrat Falls project.
“My role right now is to get the project finished safely, reliably, to make it operational,” she said. “This has to come on stream and be reliable before we make any decisions about the rest of the system. Then we will determine what the right solution is going forward. The organization will be streamlined. We have to do our part with regards to the fiscal realities that are facing the province.
“We are going to be really careful that we don’t make a mistake from a safety perspective. Construction and operation of electricity systems is very dangerous, so we are going to take every opportunity possible to streamline and reorganize as long as we don’t compromise safety and reliability.”
Industry, Energy and Technology Minister Andrew Parsons said the appointment of Williams reflects the provincial government’s commitment to making responsible decisions given the fiscal situation. He said as the government continues to examine the future role of Nalcor following commissioning of the Muskrat Falls project, having an interim CEO is the appropriate choice.
Parsons says the government has not given a mandate to Williams, but conversations can begin as they examine the future of Nalcor after Muskrat Falls is operational.
“Stan Marshall walked into the hurricane in 2016 when you talk about taking on Nalcor, taking on Muskrat Falls, and he did an amazing job in taking a dysfunctional project and getting it to the finish line, along with his team,” Parsons said. “We did need someone come in to lead Nalcor as we go into the future and there’s no one better than Jennifer Williams. I’m extremely excited, extremely pleased that she’s agreed to take this on. She’s capable, she’s competent, she’s got the history there.”
Nalcor Energy employs about 1,600 people in the province.
Williams said she is concerned about how Nalcor has been portrayed, and the impact on its employees. She said employees at Nalcor and Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro are dedicated and work hard.
“When you have uncertainty about the futures of jobs, people get distracted and that’s when people get injured,” she said. “So, I’m going to do everything I can to communicate, without false promises, about what’s happening and to provide assurance that we will not risk safety. I don’t think anyone in the public would want us to risk people’s safety.
“My job is going to be, along with streamlining the organization, getting the project completed, to make sure that we do our best to support the employees as they feel this uncertain future.”