JUNO BEACH, Fla., FPL Group (NYSE: FPL) today announced plans for a transition of the role of chief financial officer that will take place over the course of the first quarter. The incumbent CFO, Moray Dewhurst, will step down following the end of the quarter, and the position will be filled by Armando Pimentel, who was until recently a senior partner at Deloitte & Touche and who had previously served as senior engagement partner for FPL Group.
The transition comes about as a result of Dewhurst’s plan to undertake an extended ocean sailing venture.
“We are all sorry that Moray has decided to leave but we understand his longstanding personal interest in sailing,” FPL Group Chairman and CEO Lew Hay said. “Moray has played an important role in helping us to achieve the great success we have enjoyed over the past several years, and he has been a trusted and valued counselor to me personally. While we will miss him, I am optimistic that in due course he may rejoin us in a different role. However, I am delighted to announce that Armando Pimentel will pick up where Moray leaves off. Armando brings to the CFO role outstanding technical skills, a wealth of experience in supporting a variety of complex situations, and a solid background in FPL Group’s position and goals from serving as our senior engagement partner some years ago. Moray and Armando will be working closely to ensure a seamless transition, and we plan to make the formal transition following the end of the first quarter.”
Dewhurst expects to remain with the company through much of the first half of the year in order to support the transition.
“I am deeply appreciative of the opportunity that Lew and the Board have provided me to contribute to the growth and development of FPL Group,” Dewhurst said. “My experience here has been exciting, challenging and fulfilling, and I am proud to be able to say that I have worked alongside what I firmly believe is the best team in our industry. But the time is now right for me to undertake a project that is a longtime dream for my family and which draws on my love of sailing. I will continue to watch the development of FPL Group with great interest and I certainly would not rule out returning in another role at some point in the future. Through the middle of the year, however, my focus will be on ensuring a smooth transition into the CFO role for Armando. Having worked with Armando in the past, I know that I am leaving the many accountabilities of the CFO role in exceptionally capable hands.”
“It is a great pleasure to join the team at FPL Group because the company is known for strong leadership,” Pimentel said. “I am enthusiastic about the prospect of helping lead the company in its next phase of development, as it continues to grow from a position of strength amid the challenges and opportunities of pressure on commodity prices and the need to address the issue of global climate change. We will certainly need to develop new capabilities to meet new challenges in the future, but one thing that will not change is FPL Group’s focus on financial strength and discipline.”
Until recently, Pimentel was a senior partner in the regulatory and public policy group at Deloitte & Touche. Previously, he held audit partner positions on clients in the financial services and energy industries, and led Deloitte’s power and utilities segment. In addition, prior to these appointments, Pimentel was the partner in charge of the firm’s accounting research department in the firm’s national office. From 1996 to 1998, he worked in the Office of the Chief Accountant of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as a Professional Accounting Fellow. Pimentel holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Florida State University.
FPL Group will hold a conference call to discuss this announcement at 9 a.m. ET on Tuesday, Feb. 19. The call will be webcast and will be available on FPL Group's website (www.FPLGroup.com) by accessing the following link:http://www.FPLGroup.com/investor/contents/investor_index.shtml. For those unable to listen to the live webcast, a replay will be available by accessing the same link.
FPL Group, with annual revenues of over $15 billion, is nationally known as a high‑quality, efficient, and customer‑driven organization focused on energy‑related products and services. With a growing presence in 27 states, it is widely recognized as one of the country’s premier power companies. Its principal subsidiary, Florida Power & Light Company, serves approximately 4.5 million customer accounts in Florida. FPL Energy, LLC, an FPL Group competitive energy subsidiary, is a leader in producing electricity from clean and renewable fuels. Additional information is available on the Internet at www.FPLGroup.com,www.FPL.com and www.FPLEnergy.com.