Rod Kuckro (cook’-row) has been a journalist in Washington for more than 35 years.

Rod joined E&E Publishing in 2013 to report for EnergyWire, where he writes about the issues, people and politics driving the transformation of the electric utility industry.

Previously, Rod was editor in chief for Platts’ electric power group in Washington where he oversaw daily publications related to the US electricity and natural gas industries. Immediately before his tenure at Platts, Rod was the editor of Oil Daily.

He began his career in Washington with Gannett News Service. He was Washington correspondent for the Cincinnati Enquirer and the Oakland Tribune before joining McGraw-Hill’s Washington bureau.

In addition to energy, over his career Rod has covered the White House, Congress, the Federal Reserve and the development of the Internet and related technologies.

Rod is an alumnus of Georgetown University and lives in Alexandria, Virginia, with his wife Melissa. You can follow Rod on Twitter @RodKuckro.

Neva Espinoza is the Vice President of Energy Supply and Low-Carbon Resources at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI).

In this role she is responsible for the R&D team which is focused on research, development, and the application of technologies for both existing and future generating assets and large-scale renewable generation assets, including wind, solar and hydropower. She is also leading EPRI’s Low-Carbon Resources Initiative to accelerate the development and deployment of low-carbon technologies.

Espinoza previously served as the Director of R&D for EPRI’s Generation Sector. She joined EPRI in January 2012 with more than 10 years of operational and engineering experience in the power industry. Prior to EPRI, Espinoza was the operations manager at NRG’s Arthur Kill Power Station, where she was responsible for establishing and managing the safe and reliable operation of the plant. Previously, she worked at Exelon as a systems engineer, a member of the Engineering Response Team, and an operations supervisor. She was the lead test and system engineer of the first hollow fiber filtration system commissioned in the United States.

Espinoza began her career at Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory (KAPL), where she ensured safe operation of naval nuclear propulsion plants, trained staff operators and students to support fleet manning, and coordinated maintenance and testing of plant systems.

Espinoza received a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from Rutgers University and master of business administration degree from Wake Forest University. She is a graduate of the U.S. Navy’s Officer Nuclear Power Program and held a senior reactor operators license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Jeff Lyash is as comfortable talking with a crew in a plant as he is in the boardroom. His exceptional people skills and technical experience make him one of the top leaders in the energy industry. Appointed president and chief executive officer of the Tennessee Valley Authority by the Board of Directors in February 2019, Lyash leads the nation’s largest public utility and one of the top producers of electricity in its mission of serving the people of the Tennessee Valley.

Under his vision and leadership, TVA has significantly lowered operating and maintenance costs, improving both productivity and efficiency. These savings are passed on to customers in terms of lower energy costs – 70 percent of the nation pays more for energy than those served by TVA. In 2019, he announced a 10-year financial plan proposing a decade of stable rates – making TVA and the Valley even more competitive.

He introduced a long-term partnership proposal with our Local Power Companies that allows us to fully leverage the capability of the Tennessee Valley Public Power model. In less than a year, more than 90 percent of the 153 local power companies that TVA serves have signed onto the partnership. The partnership allows for better long-range planning and closely aligns the interests and objectives of TVA and our customers.

With significant public and stakeholder input, a new Integrated Resource Plan was approved that serves as a guide as TVA provides clean, reliable and low-cost energy for the next 20 years.

Lyash has shown tremendous leadership in providing support and assistance to the customers and communities impacted during the pandemic. This includes providing $1 billion of credit support to Local Power Companies; a $4 million Community Care Fund; and Back-to-Business incentives for local businesses. In addition, in August 2020 the TVA Board approved a $200 million Pandemic Relief Credit — a 2.5 percent reduction — for customers during Fiscal Year 2021. 

Before coming to TVA, Lyash served as president and CEO of Ontario Power Generation Inc., one of the largest electric generating companies in Canada with a diverse fleet of nuclear, hydroelectric, gas, biomass and renewable generating stations.

Lyash was formerly the president of CB&I Power where he was responsible for a full range of engineering, procurement and construction of multi-billion-dollar electric generation projects in both domestic and international markets. He also provided operating plant services for nuclear, coal, gas, oil and renewable generation.

Prior to joining CB&I, Lyash served as executive vice president of Energy Supply for Duke Energy where he led engineering, maintenance and operations of the company's 42,000-megawatt generation fleet, fuel procurement, power trading, major projects and construction, environmental programs, and health and safety programs.

Before the merger of Progress Energy and Duke Energy, Lyash was executive vice president of Energy Supply for Progress Energy. In this role, he oversaw Progress Energy's diverse 22,000-megawatt fleet of generating resources including nuclear, coal, oil, natural gas and hydroelectric stations. In addition, Lyash was responsible for generating fleet fuel procurement and power trading operations.

Lyash joined Progress Energy in 1993. Before leading the Energy Supply division at Progress, he served as executive vice president of corporate development, president and chief executive officer of Progress Energy Florida, senior vice president of Energy Delivery Florida, and vice president of Transmission.

Lyash also held a wide range of management and executive roles in Progress Energy's nuclear program, including operations manager, engineering manager, plant manager, and director of site operations.

Lyash began his career in the utility industry in 1981 and worked for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in senior technical and management positions throughout the Northeast and in Washington, D.C.  He received the NRC Meritorious Service Award in 1987.

Lyash earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University, and was honored with the Drexel University Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2009. He has held a senior reactor operator license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and is a graduate of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Executive Training Program and the Duke Fuqua School of Business Advanced Management Program.

Lyash is an avid golfer and fly fisher. He and his wife, Tracy, enjoy cooking, skiing, reading and charitable work – and spending time with their two married children and nine grandchildren. The Lyashes live in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Mr. Graeme Finley has over 22 years of experience, focusing primarily on oil and gas reservoirs in Wyoming. He has worked for both large and small independent operators in addition to spending considerable time as a successful consultant. Mr. Finley joined the Enhanced Oil Recovery Institute in 2019 where his focus has been on carbon storage and tight oil formations in the Powder River Basin and he currently serves on the Wyoming Board of Professional Geologists.