SAN FRANCISCO (June 11, 2013) — Michael W. Yackira, president and CEO of Las Vegas, Nev.-based NV Energy, today was elected chairman of the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), the national association of shareholder-owned electric companies, international affiliates and industry associates worldwide. The announcement was made during EEI’s annual meeting here. The Institute’s chairmanship rotates on an annual basis.

Also elected today were three vice chairmen: Theodore F. “Ted” Craver, Jr., chairman, president, and CEO of Edison International, based in Rosemead, Calif.; Nicholas K. “Nick” Akins, president and CEO of Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power (AEP); and Thomas A. “Tom” Fanning, chairman, president, and CEO of Atlanta, Ga.-based Southern Company.

“We are delighted to welcome Michael as EEI chairman,” said EEI President Tom Kuhn. “Michael’s industry experience, his focus on communicating the value of electricity and his drive toward innovation make him the perfect choice to lead EEI as chair during this transformative time for our industry.”

Kuhn also praised the vice chairs who will be supporting Yackira as part of EEI’s leadership team, calling Craver, Akins and Fanning a “superbly talented trio of executives whose expertise and commitment are recognized throughout the industry.”

Michael Yackira joined NV Energy in January 2003. He was elected CEO effective August 1, 2007. In February 2007, Yackira was elected president and COO and also to the board of directors. Prior to that, Yackira was corporate executive VP and CFO (December 2003 to February 2007) and executive VP, strategy and policy (January 2003 to December 2003).

Yackira spent more than a decade as an executive with FPL Group, serving in several positions, including president of FPL Energy; VP, finance and CFO of FPL Group; and senior VP of market and regulatory services for Florida Power & Light Company. His experience includes extensive roles in operations, finance and regulatory matters in other industries, including telecommunications and oil and gas. Yackira also is a board member of the Nevada Development Authority and the Council for a Better Nevada; vice chairman of the UNLV Foundation Board of Trustees; and chairman of the Nevada Cancer Institute Foundation. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from Lehman College, City University of New York, and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Ted Craver is chairman, president and CEO of Edison International, the parent company of Southern California Edison and Edison Mission Group (EMG). He was elected chairman and CEO in August 2008, and president in April 2008. Craver was chairman, president and CEO of EMG from January 2005 to April 2008. Before that, he was executive VP of parent company Edison International, and held the position of CFO and treasurer from January 2000 through December 2004.

Before joining Edison in 1996, Craver served as executive VP and corporate treasurer of First Interstate Bancorp from 1991 to 1996. Prior to joining First Interstate, he spent four years with Bankers Trust Company of New York and seven years with Security Pacific National Bank.

Craver serves on the boards of directors of Health Net, Inc. and the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO). Craver is on the board and serves as Immediate Past Chair of both the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and the Electric Drive Transportation Association. He also is on the board of trustees of the Autry National Center and the California Board of Trustees of The Nature Conservancy. Craver earned an MBA and a bachelor’s degree in economics and international relations from the University of Southern California.

Nick Akins is president and CEO of AEP and is a member of AEP’s board of directors. Akins became president of AEP in December 2010 and was named CEO in November 2011. He served as executive VP of Generation for AEP from 2006 until 2010 and was president and COO for Southwestern Electric Power Company from 2004 until 2006. Prior to this, Akins served as VP of Energy Marketing Services and Energy Delivery External Affairs and also VP of Industry Restructuring for AEP. Akins began his 31-year tenure with the company in 1982, and has served in a number of director and manager roles with AEP and the former Central and South West Corp. (CSW), which merged with AEP in 2000.

Akins is a member of the boards of EPRI, Nuclear Energy Institute, National Association of Manufacturers, American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, Mid-Ohio Food Bank, Greater Columbus Arts Council and the Wexner Center for the Arts. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from Louisiana Tech University and completed executive management programs at Louisiana State University, the University of Idaho and the Reactor Technology Course for Utility Executives at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a registered professional engineer in Texas.

Tom Fanning became president of Southern Company in August 2010 and assumed the additional responsibilities of CEO and chairman in December 2010. Fanning has worked for Southern Company for more than 30 years and has held 15 different positions in eight different business units. Previously, Fanning served as COO and CFO of Southern Company. Prior to this, Fanning was president and CEO of Gulf Power. While at Gulf Power, Fanning was active in the state arena and served on the Governor’s Transition Policy Team and was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush to co-chair the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Advisory Committee in 2003.

Fanning also serves on the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, the Georgia Tech College of Management advisory board, the board of trustees for Georgia Tech Foundation, the INPO board of directors, and the World Association of Nuclear Operations – Atlanta Centre governing board. He is  a member of the Business Roundtable.

Fanning earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in industrial management, and was also awarded an honorary doctor of philosophy degree, from Georgia Tech. His executive education includes programs at the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, the Harvard University School of Business and the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business.

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The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) is the association of U.S. shareholder-owned electric companies. Our members serve 95 percent of the ultimate customers in the shareholder-owned segment of the industry, and represent approximately 70 percent of the U.S. electric power industry. We also have more than 65 International electric companies as Affiliate members, and more than 170 industry suppliers and related organizations as Associate members.