David W. Crane
David W. Crane (born 1959) is an American lawyer and business executive in the energy industry.
Early life and education
David Crane grew up in Lake Forest, Illinois, on the Lake Michigan shore. His father was an aluminum sales executive. At 14 years old he wanted to be a lawyer.[1] Crane graduated from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts and from Harvard Law School with a Juris Doctor.[2] Princeton recruited him to play soccer. He was also high school president.
Career
From 1991 to 1996 Crane worked in various positions at ABB Energy Ventures as Vice President for the Asia-Pacific Region.[2]
From January 1999 to February 2000 Crane served as a Senior Vice President in the Global Power Group at Lehman Brothers where he was responsible for global power business in emerging markets (Latin America and Asia) with a focus on project financing and the privatization of state-owned utilities (Thailand, Brazil).[2]
On March 11, 2000, Crane joined International Power PLC and was responsible for the overall management of the business and the implementation of its strategy. He served as Executive Director from 2000 to 2003, Chief Operating Officer from March 2000 to December 2002 and Chief Executive Officer of from January 2003 to November 2003.[2]
Crane joined NRG Energy in 2003. He was Executive Director from December 5, 2003 to December 3, 2015 and President, Chief Executive Officer from December 2012 to December 4, 2015.[3] He served as the Chief Executive Officer and President at both GenOn Energy Americas Generation LLC and GenOn Mid Atlantic LLC, before it was acquired by NRG in 2012.[2]Crane moved NRG from Minneapolis – where the firm existed as an Xcel subsidiary – to Princeton, NJ.[4] He doubled NRG's generating capacity, quadrupling sales. Shares of the company outperformed S&P 500 and Dow Jones indexes as well as Exelon Corp., NRG’s largest competitor.[4] In December 2015 Crane resigned from his position at NRG, succeeded by Mauricio Gutierrez.[5] From December 4, 2009 to May 25, 2012 he served as a Director of El Paso LLC.[2]
In April 2016 Crane joined Pegasus Capital Advisors as its Chief Strategy Officer, serving as Operating Advisor and Senior Operating Executive.[2]
Since 2016 he has been a Director of ACWA Power International, serving as Director of ACWA Holding, Lighting Science Group Corporation and ACWA Guc, ACWA Power’s subsidiary in Turkey.[2]
He served as a Director of EP Energy LLC. [2] He is Chairman of Nuclear Innovation North America, LLC.[2]
Vision
Crane was part of NRG’s shift to green energies. In 2014, the firm had 3 million customers. With its "shift to green power systems [he hopes this will] keep them." He believes that given "80% of residential solar installations are done on 20-year leases, that means you’re my customer for the next 20 years. You’re not leaving."[6]
Personal life
Crane lives in Princeton, NJ with his wife Isabella de la Houssaye a corporate lawyer. The couple has five children. He once owned Graffiti, a bar in Hong Kong, has trekked across Costa Rica and rebuilt homes in Haiti with his children. [4]
References
- ↑ Kapadia, Reshma (13 November 2013). "Going Off the Grid". Barrons. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Executive Profile* David W. Crane". Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
- ↑ "David Crane - Forbes". Forbes. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
- 1 2 3 Ferris, David. "ELECTRICITY: NRG's David Crane wants to rule -- and overthrow". E&E Publishing. Retrieved 12 November 2014.
- ↑ DIANE CARDWELL (3 December 2015). "David Crane Leaves NRG, Replaced by Mauricio Gutierrez". New York Times. Retrieved 2 October 2016.
- ↑ Helman, Christopher (21 July 2014). "David Crane's Green Vision For Carbon-Belching NRG Energy". Forbes. Retrieved 12 November 2014.