Washington Post editor debacle years in the making | Luxury real estate tax not dead yet | Power company CEOs raking it in | Quick hits |
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More than the temps are rising: As electric bills soar, local power company CEOs are pulling down multimillion-dollar comp packages
When it comes to the cost of things, here is another dubious category that Massachusetts is a “leader” in, ranking No. 3 in the country: electric bills.
And those monthly payments are poised to go higher. Both Eversource and National Grid are pushing for rate increases to expand the power grid as demand for electricity rises amid the growth in renewable energy.
Not feeling the pinch, though, are CEOs of a trio of local industry giants, whose combined pay tops $35 million, according the latest company reports reviewed by Contrarian Boston.
Eversource CEO Joe Nolan leads the way, with a stock option heavy pay package that topped $18.8 million in 2023, according to Eversource’s report to federal securities regulators.
That represents a big increase from 2022, when Nolan’s comp package rang in at $12.9 million.
“That is a pretty big leap,” Itai Vardi, Research & Communications Manager at the Energy and Policy Institute, who called the compensation package “exorbitant.”
Company officials beg to differ. A spokesperson for Eversource argued the amount that Nolan wound up seeing in 2023 was only $7 million.
How could that be? Well, a big bump up in Nolan’s stock option awards didn’t pan out as expected thanks to a hit Eversource took in the off-shore wind business, for one.
Nolan’s retirement account also saw millions in gains, all driven by interest rates and other factors beyond company control, officials contend.
That said, Eversource clearly intended to pay Nolan even more in 2023, having doled out just over $8 million in restricted stock awards, up from the previous year.
That it didn’t work out as planned doesn’t mean the company and can turn around and take credit for drop in a portion of its CEO’s pay package, as if it were an example of virtuous cost trimming.
Eversource has also boosted Nolan’s base salary by more than 30 percent over the past two years, to $1.32 million in 2023.
John Pettigrew, CEO of UK-based National Grid, saw his compensation return to just over $8 million after spiking to more than $9 million in 2022.
And let’s not forget the new kid on block in the Massachusetts power industry, Avangrid.
The subsidiary of Spanish utility giant Iberdrola, Avangrid is a major player in the Bay State’s budding off-shore wind industry, where it has been pushing for higher prices for the power that will be generated.
CEO Pedro Azagra Blázquez pocketed nearly $10.7 million last year in salary and stock options - about a million more than he would have been paid had he been CEO for all of 2022, instead of taking over mid-year.
Avangrid also paid its CEO a $90,494 apartment allowance, $127,287 for relocation costs, and the use of a company car.
Spokespersons for all three companies contend they are well aware of the struggles their customer are experiencing, given rising energy costs.
But PR palaver aside, at the end of the day, it’s the money - and the outsized CEO pay - that talks.
Back from the dead: A group of State House pols may be prepared to play hardball to resurrect the controversial luxury real estate tax
Just call it a game of legislative whack-a-mole.
The real estate industry lobbied hard to defeat a proposed transfer fee ranging from 0.5% to 2% on home sales worth $1 million and up.
House Speaker Ron Mariano made news when he yanked the measure on the multibillion-dollar housing bond bill, which cleared the chamber last week.
Now as the state Senate examines the sprawling housing package, sources say that some members are at least eyeing a potential tradeoff in a bid to revive the tax on luxury home sales, which has significant support on the Cape and Islands, including from real estate professionals.
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