2025 EBA Energy Forum Speakers
Speaker bios will be added to this page once speakers are confirmed.
Frederick S. Bresler, III
Executive Vice President, Market Services and Strategy
PJM Interconnection LLC
Frederick S. “Stu” Bresler is responsible for the conduct of all the markets operated by PJM including those for Capacity, Day-Ahead and Real-Time Energy, Ancillary Services and Financial Transmission Rights. He is responsible for Demand Response operations, and the market efficiency component of the Regional Transmission Expansion Planning process. Mr. Bresler is responsible for the continued evolution of PJM’s markets, including the integration of renewable resources, and the development of analytics around the performance of those markets.
Mr. Bresler has been involved with bulk power system operations and the development and implementation of electricity markets for capacity, energy, transmission rights and ancillary services for over 20 years.
Mr. Bresler is chair of the Board of PJM Connext, Inc., a PJM subsidiary. Mr. Bresler is also chair of the Board of APEx (the Association of Power Exchanges), an international organization formed to facilitate development and communication of ideas and practices in the operation of global competitive electricity markets. He also serves on the Board of Habitat for Humanity of Chester County.
Michael W. Brooks
Partner
Bracewell LLP
Michael Brooks focuses his practice in the areas of energy, commodities and derivatives law. He represents energy companies and commodity trading companies in a wide variety of commercial, regulatory, compliance and enforcement matters and routinely advises clients regarding federal rules and regulations governing the trading, ownership, transportation and transmission of energy commodities.
In addition to actively representing clients in investigations and regulatory matters involving the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and designated contract markets such as CME Group and ICE Futures US, Michael conducts internal compliance reviews and trainings, works with clients to develop effective compliance programs and collaborates with commercial teams to structure large commodity transactions and acquisitions to comply with FERC and CFTC regulations. He also advises clients regarding compliance with the US Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) petroleum market manipulation regulations and federal and state laws related to carbon emissions, renewable energy, and green energy claims.
Jason Chee-Aloy
Managing Director
Power Advisory LLC
Jason is a senior electricity market and electricity policy consultant based in Toronto, with 25 years of experience in competitive and regulated electricity markets. He has acted for multiple clients with business and policy interests across Canada and the United States, within areas of generation development and investments, transmission and distribution development, energy storage development, market assessment and intelligence, business strategy, wholesale electricity market design, power procurement, energy policy development, and regulatory and litigation support.
Prior to joining Power Advisory, he was the Director of Generation Procurement at the Ontario Power Authority, and previous to that led resource adequacy, market development, and market surveillance initiatives for the Ontario Independent Electricity System Operator.
Jason is currently the Chair of the Board of Directors for the Canadian Renewable Energy Association, a member of the Advisory Board of Business Renewables Centre Canada, and is the renewable generator representative on the Independent Electricity System Operator’s Technical Panel.
He was selected as the Hedley Palmer award recipient from the Association of Power Producers of Ontario in 2019 as a leading contributor to the independent power industry, and in 2009 he was awarded with the Canadian Solar Industries Association Leader of the Year award.
Jason holds an MA in Economics with a focus on financial markets and graduated from York University and the University of Toronto.
Tony Clark
Executive Director
National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC)
Tony Clark is the Executive Director of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), the organization that represents the nation’s state utility regulators. He was a commissioner of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission from 2012 to 2016, having been appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate. Tony served as a North Dakota Public Service Commissioner from 2001 to 2012, including more than five years as the Commission’s chairman. While on the North Dakota Commission, he was the 2010-2011 president of NARUC. He was North Dakota’s Labor Commissioner in the Cabinet of Governor Edward T. Schafer and is a former state legislator, representing a portion of the City of Fargo in the North Dakota House of Representatives.
After leaving the public sector in 2016, he was engaged in consulting, where he advised clients on complex regulatory and public policy matters. He is a former director of a publicly traded company, and was Directorship Certified by the National Association of Corporate Directors. As a recognized expert on energy, telecommunications, and utility issues, he speaks frequently on regulatory matters, and he has appeared multiple times before committees of the U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and state legislatures. He holds undergraduate degrees from North Dakota State University and a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of North Dakota.
Cecelia (CeCe) Coffey
Attorney Advisor
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Bio coming soon!
Katie Coleman
Partner
O'Melveny & Myers LLP
Katie Coleman, Managing Partner of O’Melveny’s Austin office, handles complex energy transactions, regulatory policy matters, and administrative litigation, with a focus on electricity.
Recognized for her deep knowledge of the electricity market in Texas, Katie works with a wide range of businesses to navigate regulatory requirements in developing new facilities, buying or selling energy assets, structuring energy supply agreements, and managing energy costs. She assists companies in complying with state and federal laws governing electricity service and participating in wholesale markets. Katie also has unique experience structuring joint ownership agreements for privately owned electrical facilities, negotiating and drafting energy supply arrangements, and developing on-site generation. In addition to her legal expertise, Katie brings considerable technical knowledge to issues involving energy markets and transactions.
Katie also has more than a decade of experience litigating contested cases involving electricity issues before the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission. She also represents companies in litigation before the Texas Railroad Commission involving natural gas rates and terms of service.
According to her clients and peers, Katie “is extremely effective and can break down very complicated topics to explain the heart of the matter.” (Chambers USA 2021). She “has considerable expertise in rate cases, ERCOT matters and energy regulatory compliance for large projects,” and is “highly knowledgeable and responsive.” (Chambers USA 2020).
Before joining O’Melveny, Katie led the Government and Regulatory Practice at a leading Texas law firm.
Margaret Czepiel
Associate
Day Pitney LLP
Margaret Czepiel represents energy clients in regulatory, administrative litigation, enforcement, and compliance matters, predominantly in front of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and state commissions. She counsels a wide array of clients on electric and gas-related matters, from municipalities to large corporations to the New England Power Pool (NEPOOL). Clients rely on Margaret for her timely and thoughtful advice, responsiveness, attention to detail, and capable project management.
In particular, Margaret assists electric generation and transmission, energy trading companies, and natural gas clients in rate cases, enforcement matters, filings under the Federal Power Act and Natural Gas Act, compliance filings, and comments in front of FERC. She has developed knowledge of transmission and interconnection procedures across the country, and frequently provides guidance to developers of renewable and storage technologies on complex interconnection and siting-related issues. In addition, Margaret conducts regulatory due diligence for clients in connection with the acquisition of large and varied portfolios of energy assets.
In addition to her energy practice, Margaret maintains an active pro bono practice, focusing on criminal justice and parole reform issues in the District of Columbia.
Prior to joining Day Pitney, Margaret worked as a law clerk at both the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Lincoln Davies
Professor & Executive Director for Energy, Resources, and Environmental Law
University of Utah Law School
Bio coming soon!
Andrew Dressel
Vice President
Charles River Associates
Andrew Dressel is an experienced power industry consulting professional who advises utilities, government agencies, independent power providers, independent system operators, and technology developers on regulatory strategy and compliance.
Mr. Dressel provides clients keen insights on regulatory strategies focused on maintaining and improving reliability, security, and resilience during this period of unprecedented technological, market, regulatory, and workforce changes. Mr. Dressel offers guidance derived from his experience as a former NERC and WECC lawyer and over 12 years as an industry consultant.
Andrew holds a JD from Vermont Law School and a BS in Resource Conservation from the University of Montana. He also has professional certificates from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, and UC Berkeley.
Reena Goyal
Counsel
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Reena is a leading energy lawyer. She has been practising law for almost 20 years and has specialized in energy law since 2011.
Reena focuses on electricity markets, regulation and compliance. She provides strategic advice and direction to private- and public-sector clients, including shareholders, acquirers and investors. She also has experience advising developers of power assets such as energy storage, gas, hydrogen, wind, solar, biomass and nuclear.
With a vast knowledge of wholesale electricity markets and regulation, Reena is well-positioned to advise industry stakeholders, including commercial and industrial loads, generators, transmitters, distributors, utilities, demand response aggregators, traders, retailers and gas marketers.
Reena is also a litigator. When clients require legal representation before energy tribunals, she works diligently to achieve the best outcome. She has appeared before the Ontario Energy Board, the Alberta Utilities Commission, the Canada Energy Regulator and all levels of courts in Ontario.
Before joining Blakes, Reena practised in the business law group of another large law firm in Toronto. Prior to that, she was a lawyer with the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), holding various roles, including with regulatory affairs, market assessment and compliance and special advisor to the CEO. While at the IESO, she managed the market rule amendment process and represented interests in complex disputes relating to electricity markets and various procurement contracts.
Reena is the Practice Group Co-Leader of the Firm's Energy Regulatory group in Toronto, which has particular expertise in the power, renewable and resource sectors.
Lawrence J. Kahn
Distinguished Research Fellow, Tulane Center for Environmental Law
Tulane University Law School
Director, Utility Vegetation Management Initiative
Lawrence Kahn is an attorney, entrepreneur and educator who has provided advisory services in the environmental and maritime “trees and seas” space for over 25 years. He is a Distinguished Research Fellow with the Tulane Center for Environmental Law.
Mr. Kahn previously worked for the U.S. Army, where he was certified as a Contracting Officer’s Representative and negotiated and enforced government contracts and had oversight of the hazard tree removal program, management of Army timber, flora and fauna resources, protection of Army air, water and land resources, and development of environmental remediation projects and hazard tree programs for the (then) Division of Land Management.
Following law school, Mr. Kahn served as Staff Attorney for the Seamen’s Church Institute’s Center for Seafarers’ Rights before going into private practice, joining the New York-based Freehill Hogan & Mahar, where he became partner in 2007. In 2013, Kahn left the firm to pursue entrepreneurial opportunities, including both a tree company and a recycling company. Kahn served as an officer, director, and general counsel and brought the recycling company international renown when he led the successful effort to have it become the first non-EU company qualified under the EU’s Ship Recycling Regulations.
Kahn developed (and currently serves as Director of) the Tulane Utility Vegetation Management Initiative, a joint project of Tulane Law School’s Center for Environmental Law and Tulane Law School’s Center for Energy Law. Through that initiative, he is involved in training a select group of Tulane Law School students in utility vegetation management law, practice and procedure and developed with those students the first comprehensive study of all UVM laws throughout North America.
He is a graduate of Columbia University with a B.A. in ancient studies. He received his J.D. from Tulane Law School in 1995.
Michael Kessler
Managing Assistant General Counsel
Midcontinent Independent System Operator Inc. (MISO)
For over forty years, Michael has been actively engaged in a broad range of regulatory, transactional and policy matters aimed at removing barriers to the development of competitive electric generation and transmission facilities, and encouraging the development competitive power markets.
Michael currently serves as Assistant General Counsel for the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc. (MISO). Michael previously represented MISO as outside counsel for over ten years, and joined the organization as in-house counsel in June 2012. Since that time, Michael has been engaged extensively in a wide variety of issues relating to the implementation and development of MISO’s markets, including matters relating to market design, price formation, resource adequacy, and renewable energy resource integration. Michael recently has been focused on a variety strategic and policy issues, including MISO’s Resource Availability and Need and Distributed Energy Resources initiatives.
Michael regularly represents MISO in proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), state utility regulatory agencies, and various stakeholder forums. In addition, Michael has been engaged in a broad range of membership matters and related regulatory proceedings, including the MISO South integration.
Michael also has broad experience in the development and finance of electric generation projects, both domestic and international. He provided strategic and policy advice on a wide range of energy matters as both a lawyer and policy advisor to the FERC, has been a partner and served in a variety of leadership positions in private legal practice, and has served as in-house general counsel for a start-up retail energy services company. Michael’s experience provides him the interdisciplinary skills necessary to work effectively with senior management and to manage technical staff and other counsel in complex regulatory proceedings and on major projects.
Michael actively participates in Energy Bar Association and is a past President of the Midwest Chapter.
Mark G. Lauby
Senior VP and Chief Engineer
North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC)
Mark G. Lauby is the senior vice president and chief engineer at the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). Mr. Lauby joined NERC in January 2007 and has held several positions. Prior to joining NERC, Mr. Lauby worked for the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) for 20 years. Mr. Lauby began his electric industry career in 1979 at the Mid-Continent Area Power Pool in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His responsibilities included transmission planning, power system reliability assessment and probabilistic evaluation.
In 2012, Mr. Lauby was elected to the North American Energy Standards Board and was appointed to the Department of Energy’s Electric Advisory Committee by the Secretary of Energy in 2014. He has been recognized for his technical achievements including the 1992 IEEE Walter Fee Young Engineer of the Year Award. He was named a Fellow by IEEE in November 2011, and in 2014, Mr. Lauby was awarded the IEEE Power and Energy Society’s Roy Billinton Power System Reliability Award. In 2020, the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) elected Mr. Lauby as a member, citing his development and application of techniques for electric grid reliability analysis.
Mr. Lauby is the author of more than 150 technical papers about power system reliability, expert systems, transmission system planning, and power system numerical analysis techniques. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Minnesota. In addition, Mr. Lauby attended the London Business School Accelerated Development Program as well as the Executive Leadership Program at Harvard Business School.
Timothy J. Lucey
Managing Counsel & Senior Director, Ethics Programs
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Bio coming soon!
Samuel A. Newell
Principal
The Brattle Group
Dr. Newell leads Brattle’s 50+ electricity-focused consultants in analyzing critical economic questions in the industry’s energy transition.
His 25 years of consulting experience centers on electricity wholesale markets, market design, resource valuation, transmission planning, integrated resource planning, and policy analysis. Dr. Newell conducts studies and prepares testimony on behalf of independent system operators (ISOs), state energy agencies, infrastructure investors, and wholesale market participants.
Prior to joining The Brattle Group in 2004, Dr. Newell was the Director of the Transmission Service at Cambridge Energy Research Associates. Before that, he was a Manager in the Utilities Practice at Kearney.
Todd Mullins
Partner
McGuireWoods LLP
(Moderator)
Todd represents energy clients with enforcement and compliance matters involving the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) and other regulators, as well as related government and private litigation. Prior to joining McGuireWoods, Todd was a Branch Chief at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Division of Investigations, Office of Enforcement in Washington, D.C., from 2006 to 2010. In private practice and in government, Todd has been involved in various forms of litigation and enforcement involving energy matters for more than 35 years.
Randall S. Rich
Partner
Pierce Atwood LLP
Randall Rich is the partner-in-charge of the Washington, DC office. Throughout his over 40 years of experience, beginning in the Office of General Counsel of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and continuing for more than 23 years at the DC office of a large Texas law firm, Randy has always strived to form close personal bonds with clients as well as trusting relationships with both regulators and his colleagues in the energy bar. He gains an intimate understanding of the business and legal needs of clients by working for extended periods in their offices, hand-in-hand with in-house counsel. Randy guides clients through the rapidly changing regulation of the natural gas and oil industry at the federal and state level, providing sophisticated counseling and representation in contested proceedings, multiparty settlements, applications, rulemakings, and enforcement investigations.
Randy represents all segments of the energy and utility industries before FERC, the U.S. Department of Energy, and state public utility commissions. He provides comprehensive legal counsel on natural gas regulation and policy, pipeline and utility ratemaking, tariffs, certificates and abandonment; natural gas transportation, gathering, marketing and trading; Natural Gas Act exemptions for Hinshaw pipelines, production and gathering, and plant lines; enforcement of and compliance with the Natural Gas Act (NGA), Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 (NGPA), and FERC regulations; natural gas business transactions; Presidential Permits for cross-border facilities; renewable natural gas transactions; and oil pipeline regulation and waivers under the Interstate Commerce Act (ICA).
Serena Rwejuna
Partner
White & Case LLP
Serena A. Rwejuna is Head of White & Case LLP's Energy Markets and Regulatory Practice. Serena also serves as Co-Deputy Head for the North American Region of the White & Case Global Power Industry Group and Co Head for the White & Case Global Green Policy, Regulation and Incentives Strategic Specialty Area. As an entrepreneurial and commercially-minded advisor who is formally trained in psychology, management, and public policy, Serena has developed a dynamic, multidisciplinary practice focused on innovation, value creation and problem solving in highly-regulated, fast paced industries. Serena specializes in energy law and her practice focuses on advising clients on commercial, regulatory, compliance, litigation, and enforcement matters. She has experience with a variety of clean energy technologies, including solar, onshore and offshore wind, hydroelectricity, waste-to-energy, and other advanced and evolving energy technologies.
Serena counsels developers, sponsors, utilities, independent power producers, pipelines, natural gas distribution companies, technology companies, financial institutions and other traditional and emerging energy industry participants on compliance with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) regulations, cross-border and multijurisdictional transactions and regulatory matters, and advises them on project development, drafting and negotiating complex and bespoke commercial agreements, mergers and acquisitions, dispute resolution, and state regulatory compliance.
Serena represents clients before FERC, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), state regulatory agencies and in federal and state courts on matters arising under various federal and state laws, including the Federal Power Act, the Natural Gas Act, the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, the Public Utility Holding Company Act of
2005, and the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
Zachary C. Schauf
Partner
Jenner & Block LLP
A strategic counselor and litigator, Zach Schauf leverages his experience as a senior official at the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Legal Counsel and as an acclaimed advocate—equally adept before the Supreme Court, trial courts, and administrative agencies—to help clients navigate their most complex legal challenges, especially in highly regulated areas. Whether the challenge calls for charting a path through a thicket of legal constraints, reimaging regulatory frameworks, or hard-fought litigation, Zach works with clients to identify and deploy the best tools for achieving their business objectives. Zach’s experience is especially deep in the energy sector, administrative and constitutional law, government-facing controversies of all stripes, and Native American law.
In the energy sector, Zach has achieved industry-defining outcomes. His successes include the defense of state programs supporting zero-emissions nuclear power plants and high-stakes litigation involving the Federal Power Act, Administrative Procedure Act, preemption, and the dormant commerce clause. Clients regularly seek his counsel to advance their objectives within existing regulatory frameworks while adapting to the industry's evolution. His work encompasses market design, carbon regulation, and transmission policy before key regulatory bodies including the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, US Environmental Protection Agency, and state public utility commissions.
Francois Tardif
Director, Risk & Regulatory Affairs
Nexus Energy Inc.
Francois Tardif is one of the founding partners at Nexus, where he manages the company’s overall risk profile, maintains relations with regulatory bodies and ensures compliance with all applicable rules and regulations. With 17 years of experience in the field, Francois was instrumental in building Nexus’ physical trading team as Nexus’ first Director of Physical Trading before moving onto his current position in the risk & regulatory department. Prior to joining Nexus, Francois spent a decade working at Ontario Power Generation in the trading and asset management teams, building expertise in power markets across the Northeastern United States and Canada. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University.
Avi Zevin
Partner
Roselle LLP
Avi Zevin advises businesses, NGOs, and state governments on a wide range of energy-related legal and policy matters, including federal and state electric regulation, energy tax, and federal financial assistance before federal and state agencies, Congress, and the courts.
Prior to forming Roselle, Avi served at the White House as Special Assistant to the President for Clean Energy Implementation, working to advance policies and programs—principally those enacted by the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law—that facilitate the transition to a carbon-free, reliable, and cost-effective energy system. Avi was a day-one appointee at the United States Department of Energy, as the Principal Deputy General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel for Energy Policy, where he advised the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Energy and the Department's senior leadership on legal and policy matters and helped lead all aspects of the Office of General Counsel.
Prior to his recent federal service, Avi worked with a major technology company to help the company develop its federal energy policy strategy to achieve 24/7 carbon-free energy procurement goals, and was a senior attorney and affiliated scholar at the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University School of Law. Avi started his legal career as an attorney at the law firm Van Ness Feldman LLP.
Avi holds a J.D., magna cum laude, from New York University School of Law, an M.P.A. from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and a B.A., with high honors, from the University of California, Berkeley. He lives in Washington, DC with his wife and daughter and plays drums in the DC punk rock band Weird Babies.