NextEra Energy's CEO, Lewis Hay III, says he will step down from his position July 1 and retire at the end of 2013 as part of the company's planned leadership succession process.
NextEra's board of directors has appointed Hay to serve as executive chairman from July 1 until he retires. The board has also named James L. Robo, who currently serves as the company's president and chief operating officer, to succeed Hay as CEO, effective July 1.
Robo is also expected to be appointed to NextEra's board on or around the time he assumes the position of CEO.
Robo will be responsible for the overall strategy and operations of the company, and Hay, in addition to assuming his duties as board chairman, will have direct responsibility for the company's legal, human resources and federal governmental affairs functions. He also will continue to provide input and counsel on strategy and other matters.
Hay joined NextEra Energy in August 1999 as chief financial officer. In March 2000, he was appointed president of NextEra Energy Resources LLC. He was elected CEO of NextEra Energy Inc. in June 2001 and named chairman of the board in January 2002.
Hay was the chief architect of the company's clean energy growth strategy, under which the company doubled its generating capacity to 41 GW during his tenure as CEO, including the addition of wind, solar, nuclear and natural-gas facilities.
