Oglethorpe Power and its Board of Directors are pleased to announce that Jeff Swartz has been named Senior Vice President, Plant Operations, reporting to Oglethorpe Power's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, David Sorrick. Swartz succeeds Jim Messersmith who retired from the corporation after more than 31 years of distinguished service to Oglethorpe Power and the 38 Electric Membership Corporations (EMCs) it serves.

"Jeff's extensive experience and expertise in the electric utility industry made him an ideal choice to lead the operations of Oglethorpe Power's owned and operated assets," said Sorrick. "His broad knowledge of energy operations and organizational management align closely with Oglethorpe Power's culture, structure and diverse generation asset portfolio. With Jeff's strong leadership and decades of energy experience, our plant operations will continue to be well-positioned to meet our member EMCs' expanding and evolving power supply needs." 

"Throughout his tenure at Oglethorpe Power, Jim Messersmith has been a driving force in ensuring our operations run smoothly and efficiently, and his significant contributions have benefited plant operations and our entire organization," Sorrick continued. "Under Jim's strong leadership, we have achieved new levels of operational excellence that have positioned us for continued success well into the future."

Swartz comes to Oglethorpe Power from New Fortress Energy with more than 30 years of leadership experience, including successfully leading the growth and evolution of a more than 9,000-megawatt (MW) generating fleet comprised primarily of coal and oil assets to a more than 11,000-MW diversified fleet, anchored with natural gas assets and a growing renewable portfolio. He has also held executive operations and management positions with Duke Energy. Swartz holds a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and is a veteran of the U.S. Navy with engineering experience in nuclear power.