J. Wayne Leonard

From Global Energy Monitor

J. Wayne Leonard has been president and chief executive officer of Entergy since 1999. Prior to being appointed CEO, he was chief operating officer of international operations for the company.[1]

Before moving to Entergy, Leonard was president of the Energy Commodities Strategic Business Unit at Cinergy Capital Trading. He served as vice president and chief financial officer of Cinergy Corporation from 1994 to 1996. He joined PSI Energy in 1973 and was chief financial officer when PSI merged with Cinergy.[1]

Leonard received his B.S. in Accounting and Political Science from Ball State University and his MBA from Indiana University.[1]

Affiliations

Leonard has the following affiliations:[1]

  • Tidewater, Inc., Board of Directors
  • Edison Electric Institute, Board of Directors
  • Mississippi River Delta BusinessLINC (appointed in 2000 by former President Bill Clinton)
  • Committee for a Better New Orleans
  • Business Council of New Orleans
  • New Orleans United Way Board of Trustees (Chairman, 2001, 2002)
  • National D-Day Museum Foundation Board of Trustees
  • American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
  • Ball State University College of Business Advisory Board

Compensation

In May 2007, Forbes listed Leonard as receiving $8.5 million in total compensation for the latest fiscal year, with a five-year total compensation of $40.06 million. He ranked 11th on the list of CEOs in the Utilities industry, and 206th among all CEOs in the United States.[2]

Leonard acknowledges climate change as the biggest issue for the power industry

At Entergy's annual meeting in May 2009, CEO Leonard told shareholders that global warming is the most important challenge for his industry and "possibly the biggest risk the world has ever faced." Leonard went on to say that the costs of climate change are much greater than the costs of acting to prevent it, and that taking only small steps will do nothing to avoid catastrophe. However, Leonard also argued against wind power and other renewable energy sources as the correct path of action, instead insisting that the only viable course is to retrofit existing coal plants with carbon capture and storage capabilities. "The U.S. cannot afford to shut down its existing coal plants, and China cannot afford to stop building coal plants. There is only one solution, and that is to fix what we have," he said.[3]

Entergy power portfolio

Out of its total 32,854 MW of electric generating capacity in 2005 (3.08% of the U.S. total), Entergy produces 56.5% from natural gas, 30.1% from nuclear, 12.3% from coal, 0.8% from oil, and 0.4% from hydroelectricity. Entergy owns power plants in Arkansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, Texas, and Vermont; 40.9% of the company's generating capacity is in Louisiana, and 23.2% is in Arkansas.[4]

Existing coal-fired power plants

Entergy owned 5 coal-fired generating stations in 2005, with 4,015 MW of capacity. Here is a list of Entergy's coal power plants:[4][5][6]

Plant Name State County Year(s) Built Capacity 2007 CO2 Emissions 2006 SO2 Emissions
White Bluff AR Jefferson 1980, 1981 1700 MW 12,400,000 tons 38,122 tons
Independence AR Independence 1983, 1984 1700 MW 12,200,000 tons 26,172 tons
Nelson LA Calcasieu 1982 615 MW 7,250,000 tons 17,445 tons

In 2006, Entergy's 3 coal-fired power plants emitted 31.9 million tons of CO2 (0.53% of all U.S. CO2 emissions) and 82,000 tons of SO2 (0.54% of all U.S. SO2 emissions).

Resources

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Leadership, Entergy, accessed December 2008.
  2. CEO Compensation: #206 J Wayne Leonard, Forbes.com, May 3, 2007.
  3. "Entergy CEO says coal is the answer to global warming," Times-Picayune, May 8, 2009.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Existing Electric Generating Units in the United States, 2005, Energy Information Administration, accessed April 2008.
  5. Environmental Integrity Project, Dirty Kilowatts: America’s Most Polluting Power Plants, July 2007.
  6. Dig Deeper, Carbon Monitoring for Action database, accessed June 2008.

Related GEM.wiki articles

External links

This article is a stub. You can help by expanding it.