New Jersey Resources recently announced the appointment of James Eckert as Vice President, Storage and Transportation, NJR Midstream Company (S&T), a wholly-owned subsidiary of NJR, effective Aug. 1.
Eckert will succeed Vice President Ginger Richman, who will remain with the company to facilitate the leadership transition until her scheduled retirement on Dec. 31.
“With more than three decades of natural gas marketing and operational experience, James is a respected leader and welcome addition to our executive team,” said Steve Westhoven, president and CEO of New Jersey Resources. “This is a critical time for the energy industry; and I have every confidence he will position our Storage and Transportation business for continued success and serve our customers and company well.”
NJR’s S&T business invests in, owns and operates high-quality natural gas pipeline and storage facilities used to serve customers in the natural gas marketplace, including distributors, producers, interstate pipelines, electric generators and wholesale gas marketers.
Its assets include the 84-mile Adelphia Gateway pipeline in southeastern Pennsylvania; Leaf River Energy Center in southeastern Mississippi, which consists of three salt dome caverns with a working natural gas storage capacity of 32 Bcf that connects to seven pipelines; and a 50% equity interest in Steckman Ridge, a 12 Bcf storage facility in Bedford County, Pennsylvania with access to two interstate pipelines and natural gas supplies from the East Coast and Rocky Mountain regions.
Eckert will be responsible for leading NJR’s S&T business, including overseeing a diverse team of employees, developing and executing new and organic growth opportunities and driving operational and organizational efficiencies across all S&T’s assets. He will also serve as president of Adelphia Gateway LLC and Leaf River Energy Center LLC upon Ms. Richman’s retirement.
Eckert’s extensive experience includes leadership roles in Operations, Marketing, Business Development, Asset Optimization, Gas Scheduling, Gas Control, Storage, Operations Planning, Measurement and Procurement. Prior to joining NJR, he served as senior vice president of Business Development at Millennium Pipeline in Houston, Texas, where he was responsible for developing new business prospects that support the growth and expansion of Millennium’s pipeline assets; identifying opportunities to increase supply and demand to add value for existing shippers and driving customer growth through infrastructure enhancements. Before working at Millennium, Eckert spent more than 20 years with El Paso Corporation and 10 years with TC Energy, where he worked as vice president of Marketing and Optimization and was responsible for marketing gas transportation and storage assets across the U.S natural gas pipelines.
Richman has been a key member of NJR’s executive team for over 20 years and served in numerous leadership roles across the organization, including vice president of S&T, where she is responsible for overseeing all strategies for S&T’s assets and leads commercial operations and regulatory functions to support the effective management of day-to-day business activities, customer transactions and compliance. Prior to leading S&T, she was vice president of NJR Energy Services, where she was responsible for business development, strategy and expanding the business’ footprint into new market areas.
“Ginger has contributed immensely to the success of our company over the course of her career,” Westhoven said. “Her leadership and contributions have been invaluable to the growth of our S&T business and organization. I thank her for her dedication and service that have helped drive our company forward. On behalf of our entire organization, I wish her well in her retirement.”
About New Jersey Resources
New Jersey Resources (NYSE: NJR) is a Fortune 1000 company that, through its subsidiaries, provides safe and reliable natural gas and clean energy services, including transportation, distribution, asset management and home services. NJR is composed of five primary businesses:
- New Jersey Natural Gas, NJR’s principal subsidiary, operates and maintains over 7,700 miles of natural gas transportation and distribution infrastructure to serve more 570,000 customers in New Jersey’s Monmouth, Ocean and parts of Morris, Middlesex, Sussex and Burlington counties.
- Clean Energy Ventures invests in, owns and operates solar projects with a total capacity of more than 430 megawatts, providing residential and commercial customers with low-carbon solutions.
- Energy Services manages a diversified portfolio of natural gas transportation and storage assets and provides physical natural gas services and customized energy solutions to its customers across North America.
- Storage and Transportation serves customers from local distributors and producers to electric generators and wholesale marketers through its ownership of Leaf River Energy Center and the Adelphia Gateway Pipeline, as well as our 50% equity ownership in the Steckman Ridge natural gas storage facility.
- Home Services provides service contracts as well as heating, central air conditioning, water heaters, standby generators, solar and other indoor and outdoor comfort products to residential homes throughout New Jersey.
NJR and its nearly 1,300 employees are committed to helping customers save energy and money by promoting conservation and encouraging efficiency through Conserve to Preserve and initiatives such as The SAVEGREEN Project and The Sunlight Advantage.
