Midwest ISO Announces Retirement of Roger Harszy

CARMEL, Ind., April 22 /PRNewswire/ -- The Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator (Midwest ISO) today announced the retirement of Roger Harszy, Vice President of Real-Time Operations.  Mr. Harszy has been with the Midwest ISO since June 2000, and led the smooth opening of Midwest ISO's commercial operations. Richard Doying, Vice President of Operations for Midwest ISO, will be responsible for all market and real-time operations, effective May 1, 2010.  

"It is with both joy and sadness that we announce Roger's retirement.  Without a doubt, Roger has been a fundamental and essential part of the development and continuing success of the Midwest ISO," said John R. Bear, President and CEO of the Midwest ISO.  "Roger and his team were instrumental in ensuring that we not only launched energy and ancillary services markets, but that they were successful and continue to provide value to the membership. If it were not for Roger's direction, expertise and leadership, I know we would not be where we are today.  On behalf of the entire Midwest ISO family, we will miss him, and we wish him all the best in his retirement."

Mr. Harszy expressed his gratitude to the organization and to all of his co-workers on the Real-Time Operations team.  "While this was a difficult decision, the timing couldn't have been better.  The stable state of the Midwest ISO and its solid employee base leave me with complete confidence that our real-time market operations will continue to provide operational excellence for our stakeholders and the customers they serve," said Mr. Harszy. "I will definitely miss the great people I have worked with over the last 10 years, as well as the wonderful stakeholder community that has made us what we are today."

Mr. Harszy has been responsible for the real-time operations and reliability of the integrated transmission network under the Midwest ISO's functional control since the organization was formed.  His team was instrumental in several landmark Midwest ISO initiatives, including the integration of 25 transmission-owning members; the 2005 implementation of energy markets in the Midwest based on security-constrained economic dispatch; implementation of a contingency reserve pool, which led to the creation of an Ancillary Services Market in 2009 to more efficiently meet the region's energy reserve requirements. Mr. Harszy also oversaw the establishment of Midwest ISO as the regional Balancing Authority. In his tenure as Vice President of Real-Time Operations, he helped earn six Examples of Excellence awards from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), and improved reliability across the Midwest ISO footprint.

He is a well-respected industry expert who found solutions to immediate and long-term reliability and operational issues.  Mr. Harszy joined the Midwest ISO as Director of Area Operations in 2000.  Following his promotion to Vice President of Real Time Operations in 2004, he led the smooth opening of Midwest ISO's commercial operations.  Mr. Harszy is a member of the board of directors for the Midwest Reliability Organization regional electric reliability council, and a former member of the ReliabilityFirst board of directors. Mr. Harszy also has served as chairman of the Mid-America Interconnected Network (MAIN) Operating Committee, was a member of the NERC Operating Committee and has served as chairman of NERC's Operating Reliability Subcommittee.

Prior to joining the Midwest ISO, Mr. Harszy was Manager of Operations at Ameren Corporation, where he was responsible for all real-time operations in Ameren's control area, including all transmission and generation assets. He also managed the Energy Management Systems support group, the statistical data group, and he was responsible for the development and implementation of strategy to comply with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Open Access Orders 888 and 889.

About the Midwest ISO

The Midwest ISO ensures reliable operation of, and equal access to power lines in 13 U.S. states and the Canadian province of Manitoba. The Midwest ISO manages one of the world's largest energy markets, clearing nearly $23 billion in energy transactions annually. The Midwest ISO was approved as the nation's first regional transmission organization (RTO) in 2001. The non-profit 501(C)(4) organization is governed by an independent Board of Directors, and is headquartered in Carmel, Indiana, with operations centers in Carmel and St. Paul, Minnesota. Membership in the organization is voluntary. For more information, visit www.midwestmarket.org.

SOURCE Midwest ISO