EDP CEO, Antonio Mexia, takes over the EURELECTRIC Presidency reins

Meeting on the sidelines of the annual convention on 31 May, EURELECTRIC’s Board of Directors appointed a new Presidential team to lead the industry association over the next two years. The team comprises, as President of the association, António Luís Guerra Nunes Mexia, CEO of Portuguese utility, EDP, and as Vice Presidents – on equal status - Alistair Phillips-Davies, Chief Executive of SSE and Jean-Bernard Lévy, Chairman and CEO of EDF. Together with Secretary General Hans ten Berge, the three gentlemen, each with a two-year mandate, effective 1 June 2015, will steer the industry association and determine its strategic priorities, responding and adapting to change, and ensuring, at the same time, that EURELECTRIC maintains its position in Brussels as the eminent voice of its members.

Introducing the new team at a press conference in Berlin, Johannes Teyssen, CEO of E.ON SE and outgoing President of EURELECTRIC, expressed his full confidence in the four-person team, acknowledging the wealth of experience they jointly bring to EURELECTRIC. He used the opportunity to reflect on achievements under his own two-year Presidency, dwelling on some of the conclusions of EURELECTRIC’s latest project on downstream market design. “Customers are at the heart of our business”, he said, “and an enabling framework must be put in place to ensure that our companies can offer our customers the best deal.”“Much still remains to be done to put in place well-functioning retail, wholesale and carbon markets but EURELECTRIC has successfully positioned itself as a forward-thinking and constructive partner in Europe’s energy transition”, he continued.

Dr Teyssen served as President - and previously Vice President - of EURELECTRIC for a total of five years. His successor, Mr Mexia is himself no newcomer to the association, having already played a key role as Vice President for the past two years. Mr Mexia reiterated Mr Teyssen’s trust in the Presidential team with the following statement: “We need to reveal the true value of electricity, keeping the customer at the centre, and fully supporting the construction of a true Internal Energy Market that will enhance the pursuit of the decarbonisation agenda. Full transparency and trust are key to this end.” Highlighting the challenges ahead,
Mr Mexia said, “Extraordinary times call for extraordinary leadership. I am therefore honoured to work alongside such a team of outstanding industry leaders.”

Vice President Alistair Phillips-Davies pledged to pursue the vision of an integrated European energy market and cautioned against regulations that damage efforts to achieve that. He underlined the need to make the energy transition work “with the full engagement of customers”. “Customer buy-in is a fundamental pillar of our evolving business”, he said. “Without the full commitment of our customers, we simply cannot succeed.”

Building on these statements, Vice-President Jean-Bernard Lévy stressed the fact that sustainable, low-carbon and competitive energy are essential for citizens and businesses. He added, "New models for energy are taking shape in Europe and looking forward, customer expectations and technological innovation will be key drivers of change."

Secretary General Hans ten Berge expressed enthusiasm on taking on new challenges that come with a new team. His invaluable experience and familiarity with the Brussels’ EU institutional machinery is a vital asset in ensuring the industry’s voice continues to be heard - and taken careful note of - at the highest political level.

Press release available here.