After her tenure as president and CEO at PNM Resources Inc., Pat Vincent-Collawn may join the board of directors at EVgo, an electric vehicle charging company. The announcement of her board nomination came at the closing of EVgo's merger with Climate Change Crisis Real Impact I Acquisition Corp., a blank check company formed to acquire a company positioned to address the climate crisis.
The nomination marks one of Collawn's next professional ventures following 11 years in her role as president and CEO of PNM, the state's leading electric company and its largest public company. Under her leadership, PNM committed to carbon-free energy generation by 2040. Prior to her post at PNM, Collawn was CEO of Public Service Co. of Colorado, an Xcel Energy Inc. subsidiary.
Collawn is also a director at energy services company Equitrans Midstream and was elected chair of the Edison Electric Institute, a national association of investor-owned electric companies. She also serves on the board of the Electric Power Research Institute and at a nuclear power plant insurance company, and is a member of the New Mexico Partnership. In total, Collawn has more than 25 years of "operational, executive and board level leadership experience in the utility and energy sectors," according to a release from EVgo.
Her leadership post at PNM is set to end after the close of PNM's merger with Avangrid Inc., which is set to close later this year, pending approvals. The deal, valued at $4.3 billion when it was announced in October. In February, PNM Resources shareholders voted to approve the merger, which was then approved by the Public Utility Commission of Texas this month. But also this month, New Mexico's Public Regulation Commission raised concerns regarding regulatory actions taken against Avangrid companies, according to reporting from the Albuquerque Journal.
"Pat shares EVgo’s passion for sustainability, and has been a pioneer in the charge toward decarbonization, making her specially qualified to serve on EVgo’s Board,” said EVgo Chairman David Nanus in a statement. “As a board, we remain committed to performing at the highest level to support and elevate EVgo’s important work, and I look forward to partnering with Pat and the rest of the EVgo board as the Company executes its growth strategy and extends its leadership position in [direct current] fast charging.”
EVgo says it is the nation's largest "public fast charging network" for electric vehicles, as well as the first to be powered entirely by renewable energy. The company owns more than 800 fast charging locations in 65 metropolitan areas, its release says. It works with automakers, fleet and rideshare operators, retail establishments, shopping centers, gas stations and parking lot operators to deploy charging tech, the release says.
The company is owned by LS Power, a New York-based development and investment firm focusing on power generation, electric transmission and energy infrastructure.
