WEC Energy Group’s Vernon J. Peterson Appointed Chair of the 2020 MEA Board of Directors

MEA Energy Association (MEA) recently announced the appointment of Vernon J. Peterson as chair of the 2020 MEA Board of Directors. With respect to their pursuit of delivering safe and reliable energy, President of MEA, Patrick Van Beek has stated, “MEA has served the energy industry for 115 years. As partners, we help utilities focus on safely delivering natural gas and electricity. “

Peterson’s responsibility as Vice President of Wisconsin Field Operations is safe delivery of electric and natural gas. Additionally, field operations like forestry and locating, major projects, contractor-vendor relationship management, joint construction and resource planning are undertaken by him. Peterson received a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering and a Bachelor of Science degree from Marquee University and St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, respectively.  

Acknowledging the new responsibility, Peterson said,” Our industry, world, and everyday lives are changing. It’s an honor to be assuming the chair role and helping lead MEA over this next year.” He further stated that he realizes that many of the companies are facing drastic challenges as a result of response to the national emergency faced by the world. He aims to contribute towards keeping the employees and customers safe while maintaining operational activities without stemming the growth of the organization.

The slate of board members elected in 2020 include names like, John C. Webster, director natural gas division of Hutchinson Utilities Commission (Minn.) as 1^st Vice Chair, Eric M. Kozak, vice president, gas operations of Ameren Illinois Company (Ill.) as 2^nd Vice Chair and Patrick D. Van Beek, president of MEA Energy Association (Minn.) as Secretary. To name a few Directors, Tamara A. Bewley, natural gas market manager of Border States Electric Supply (Mich.), Wes Ashton, vice president of operations of Black Hills Energy (Ark.) and Mark C. Johnson, director SEMI gas operations of DTE Energy (Mich.).

About MEA Energy Association

Started as the Midwest Gas Association when a couple of local gas companies came together in 1905 to share problems and ideas, MEA has grown to supply nearly 100 gas and energy delivery companies. Their mission is to empower the energy industry through knowledge, industry connections and development of leadership. MEA continues to offer over 430 online training courses for 192, 195, OSHA, ASME, electric basics along with paperless evaluations and scannable badges to facilitate instant verification of requirements through EnergyU.

For more Information about MEA: https://www.meaenergy.org/