Edison Electric Institute elects new board chair

Edison Electric Institute (EEI) elected Warner Baxter, the executive chairman of Ameren Corp., as its new board chair.

EEI, the national association of investor-owned electric companies, also elected two vice chairs — Pedro Pizarro, president and CEO of Edison International, and Maria Pope, president and CEO of Portland General Electric. The announcement was made during EEI’s June board meeting in Orlando, Fla.

“We also are pleased to announce that Warner Baxter was elected EEI chair for the 2022-2023 cycle,” EEI President Tom Kuhn said. “Warner previously served as an EEI vice chair and is an outstanding leader for Ameren and for our industry. I look forward to continuing our work together to advance our common goals and to advance public policies that benefit the customers we so proudly serve.”

Baxter succeeds Gerry Anderson, executive chairman of Detroit-based DTE Energy, who served the previous term as chair.

“On behalf of EEI and our member companies, I extend our sincerest thanks to Gerry Anderson for his service as EEI chair,” EEI President Tom Kuhn said. “Gerry’s continued dedication to delivering a resilient clean energy future to our customers led to the successful inclusion of many key industry priorities in the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This law provides significant investments in critical energy infrastructure and new carbon-free technologies and includes a solid down payment on the electric vehicle charging infrastructure needed to accelerate the electrification of the transportation sector.”

During his more than 25-year tenure at St. Louis-based Ameren, Baxter has served in various leadership roles, including chairman, president, and CEO. He also served as chief financial officer and president of Ameren Missouri. He has a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of Missouri-St. Louis and sits on several industry boards, including the Electric Power Research Institute, where he was past chairman of the board. Baxter also serves on the board of directors of U.S. Bancorp, BJC HealthCare, and Greater St. Louis Inc.

“America’s electric companies are committed to getting the energy we provide as clean as we can as fast as we can, without compromising on the reliability or affordability that our customers depend on,” said Baxter. “Throughout the challenges of the past few years, our industry has remained focused on making investments that enhance energy grid resilience and energy security while enabling a cleaner and affordable future for all.”

Kuhn also applauded the newly elected vice chairs.

“Pedro and Maria are tremendous leaders for our industry, particularly in their efforts to reduce economy-wide carbon emissions and to enhance energy grid resilience through investments in innovative new technologies. We are extremely fortunate to have them serve on the EEI leadership team,” Kuhn said.