Eversource appoints new CEO
Background includes customer service, renewable energy
Eversource Energy announced Wednesday it has appointed a new chief executive officer with a background in customer service, succeeding CEO Jim Judge, who was forced to defend the utility’s response to Tropical Storm Isaias.
Joe Nolan, whose portfolio includes renewable energy, a priority for the utility that’s partnering with a Danish company on an offshore wind power project, takes the top job May 5 whenJudge becomes executive chairman of the board.
“I started in customer s ervice,” said Nolan, Evers o u r c e ’s executive vice president for strategy and customer and corporate relations. “It’s the only job I ever had.”
Judge, CEO since 2016, took heat from Gov. Ned Lamont, members of the General Assembly and Connecticut regulators for the utility’s preparation of, and response to, Isaias, which swept through Connecticut Aug. 4.
As executive chairman Judge, 65, will oversee strategic and investment planning and will remain involved in investor and industry relations, Eversource said.
The leadership change at Eversource, which provides electricity and natural gas to about 4.3 million customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts and NewHampshire, is part of a succession plan that had not been announced, Nolan said in an interview.
He promised to “win the hearts and minds of the people in Connecticut” and said his priorities also include clean energy. He helped negotiate a deal with NewLondonover payments for the use of the State Pier that will be a staging area for wind turbine assembly.
“I was able to get that deal nailed down,” he said.
During his 35-year career at Eversource, Nolan, 56, has held leadership jobs in customer service, government and regulatory affairs, community relations and corporate strategy. He is leader of the Eversource-Orsted joint venture that plans to develop at least 4,000 megawatts of offshore wind capacity.
Nolan said Eversource will respond Tuesday to a report issued March 26 by the state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority that criticized the utility and United Illuminating over the response to Isaias.
“It was a difficult audit to read,” he said.