BPL Global Adds Distinguished Independent Board Members

PITTSBURGH, Jan. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- BPL Global®, Ltd. (BPLG), a smart grid technology company, announced today the election of Mr. William H. Downey and Ms. Susan Tomasky as board members. Mr. Downey and Ms. Tomasky join board chairman Dr. Francis J. Harvey as industry experts and independent directors. The addition of prestigious industry leaders represents a significant change in the level of industry knowledge, electric utility business experience and skill in directing corporate growth for the BPL Global Board of Directors.

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"We are delighted to add Bill Downey and Susan Tomasky as independent board members. Their insights and strategic perspectives combined with extensive industry experience can add significant value to our company as growth accelerates," said Dr. Francis J. Harvey, chairman of the BPL Global Board of Directors. "They arrive at an opportune time in the company's growth trajectory as our smart grid solutions gain acceptance with utilities around the globe.

"We have already begun to apply their insights into the motivations and drivers for the industry, refining the direction of our technology development and our focus on operational execution," said Peter Londa, CEO of BPLG. "Their executive-level industry experience will help us be more responsive to the changing dynamics of the utility industry. As experienced board members for public and private companies, Bill Downey and Susan Tomasky bring a wealth of knowledge to advance BPLG in the marketplace."

Mr. Downey brings more than 35 years of corporate experience in operations, external relations, public policy, government regulation, strategic planning and business plan execution to the BPLG Board of Directors. Most recently Mr. Downey served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Great Plains Energy and President and Chief Operating Officer of Kansas City Power & Light Company. Prior experience includes a broad range of executive positions at Great Plains Energy, Kansas City Power & Light, Commonwealth Edison Company and Unicom Energy Services Company. He has significant public and non-profit board experience serving on more than 25 boards during the past twenty seven years. Mr. Downey earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Boston University, a Master of Science from Columbia University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Chicago.

Ms. Tomasky brings a diverse background in the energy industry including corporate experience in operations, finance and legal to the BPLG Board of Directors. Most recently, Ms. Tomasky served as President of AEP Transmission, a division of American Electric Power Co, Inc (AEP). Previously, she held a variety of executive roles at AEP including chief financial officer, general counsel, and executive vice president. She has served as general counsel for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and on a number of corporate and not-for-profit Boards, including the Tesoro Corporation and the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. In 2001 and 2002, she was named a Top Woman in Energy in Commodities Now Magazine. Ms. Tomasky earned a Bachelor of Arts & Science degree from University of Kentucky and a Law degree from George Washington University Law School.

Elected as chairman in 2011 and a board member since 2008, Dr. Francis J. Harvey continues to provide BPL Global with his extensive knowledge of the energy industry, seasoned expertise as a board member and skill in directing transformational change. His background includes Chief Operating Officer of the Industries and Technology Group with Westinghouse Electric Corporation and Secretary of the Army by appointment of President George W. Bush. Dr. Harvey has served on more than 20 different corporate and non-corporate boards including portfolio companies of the Carlyle Group. He earned his doctorate in Metallurgy and Material Sciences from the University of Pennsylvania and his bachelor's degree in Metallurgical Engineering and Material Science from the University of Notre Dame.

Delivering intelligent grid solutions to many of the largest utilities in the US, Europe and China, BPLG is a leading provider of smart grid technology from substations through customer premises. The company's distribution solutions integrate management of distributed energy resources (DER) including managed load, energy storage, renewables and distributed generation. BPLG's substation solutions include our market leading transformer monitors as well as substation automation.

About BPL Global
BPL Global® (BPLG) provides electric utilities with a suite of smart grid solutions for advanced distribution automation from substations through customer premises. Electrical networks are transforming with a growing array of distributed energy resources (DER) at the edge. The DER Buildout™ underway includes managed load, energy storage, renewables and distributed generation. Our solutions collaborate across the grid to enable the DER Buildout, helping utilities increase efficiency and reliability to improve their financial, operational and environmental performance. BPLG combines our experience in applying smart grid solutions with our market-leading technology to successfully serve leading utilities around the world. www.bplglobal.net

SOURCE BPL Global, Ltd.