Welcome to the latest edition of the NRG People Power series, where we highlight the people who help make our organization successful through the work that they do to support our customers. In this feature, we invite you to get to know our Senior Director of Regulatory Affairs, Bill Barnes.
For a man with an impressively broad biography, those who work with Bill say he is refreshingly laid back. While the path to his current role as Senior Director of Regulatory Affairs has been unconventional, he knows he’s in the right place. He started his life in Ohio, got his Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from the University of Dayton, and is an enthusiastic Cleveland Browns fan. From Ohio, Bill then went wherever opportunity knocked, finding adventures and education in Florida, New York, and his home of 23 years - Texas. A deeply sociable man, Bill can cover a wide array of topics, from his current favorite streaming programs (The Boys, Snowfall), to his family’s favorite vacation spot (the British Virgin Islands), to the nitty-gritty of the regulatory and legislative worlds, and of course, his very first love, engineering.
From rocket science to structuring energy markets
It isn’t a strictly intuitive career trajectory, Bill knows, but it’s a unique one. He was “dead set” on being an engineer and began his professional journey with an internship at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. There, he worked on a polysiloxane, or silicone, film that can be applied to pilot helmets and cockpit windows, to help deflect laser weaponry. He also had an offer from Macdonald Douglas in L.A. to work on rocket systems that deliver satellite equipment to space. Had he taken the job, he literally would have been a rocket scientist - a tempting path and the culmination of his engineering goals. But for a man who describes himself as driven, competitive, and social, the idea of sitting alone in a lab all day without anyone to talk to made him realize that rocket science just wasn’t the right fit.
Seeking a more social role, Bill took a position with Tampa-based Andersen Consulting (now Accenture), where he was on the forefront of developing the market structures for the newly deregulated energy markets. Four years later, the newly formed Electricity Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) brought in Accenture to help them develop the rules and systems for the first version of Texas’ competitive energy market.
Bill later worked for ERCOT itself, developing financial and structural rules for the wholesale market. “That really got me into the details and the weeds, quickly,” he said. “When you work at the market itself… you become an expert on how the market works.” Amid building an energy market from scratch, he also got his master’s degree in Electrical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin.
While working in ERCOT, Bill embraced the opportunity to go to New York and trade power commodities at Goldman Sachs, manage wind farm commodities and a combined cycle power plant, and trade ERCOT products. Unfortunately, the financial crisis of 2008-2009 occurred, and he had a front-row seat to the commodities decline. Bill managed to survive the resulting layoffs, but the glamor of living and working in NYC had faded, so he and his family moved back to Texas.
Defender of good policy
Settled back in Austin, Bill took a newly opened regulatory role with NRG, and hasn’t looked back. For the past decade, his group has been responsible for crafting, maintaining, and driving policy and market rules that support thriving, innovative, and competitive markets. According to Bill, efficient markets with low-cost solutions are “the optimal market structure for consumers.” Therefore, he has made it his mission to keep the playing field level and fair for consumers and businesses, and to defend good policy.
Some of the challenges of creating the optimal market structure involve not only where the market has been, but also where it is heading. The transition of energy supply to cleaner, more renewable sources has faced some headwinds in recent years. Bill sees it as an exciting challenge his team is ready to face. The NRG Regulatory and Government Affairs team is “at the forefront of advocating for market-based solutions that balance the current infrastructure with a cleaner energy mix,” he says confidently.
His confidence is warranted. Apart from his work at NRG — where he takes a “view from 30,000 feet” approach, engaging with all departments of the company and understanding how they all work together — Bill also represents NRG at the Texas legislative sessions, and participates in the ERCOT stakeholder process. During the most recent session, Bill testified six times in front of the Legislature on market reforms that would help stabilize and improve grid reliability — an outcome beneficial to NRG customers and all citizens of Texas. For Bill, representing NRG and its customers’ interests in the energy policy sphere “is something I take seriously. It’s a badge of honor.”
Gridiron, drumsticks, and BBQ tongs
When he isn’t guiding the future of energy markets, Bill’s biggest adventure is being a good Dad to his sons Max and Wyatt. You’ll often find both Bill and his wife Lisa cheering their boys on from the football sidelines. The proud parents have been involved with their sons’ teams from an early age; Bill coached them growing up, and his wife Lisa has led the team’s extensive booster club for years.
Bill also likes to show off his culinary side with his grilling tongs and professes to make “the best steaks ever eaten.” Spending time grilling with his family takes special precedence now as Max will be heading to Golden, Colorado soon to play running back at Colorado School of Mines.
And, just in case his resume wasn’t eclectic enough, Bill is also a drummer for a local rock cover band, “Drink First,” gigging several times a year. Ironically, given how busy he is, his favorite cover is Styx’s “Too Much Time on My Hands.” The song’s lyrics, “Now I'm a jet fuel genius, I can solve the world's problems,” seem particularly appropriate for this chemical engineer-turned-regulatory-expert whose energy and intellect are devoted to building a strong and equitable energy market.
NRG's Government & Regulatory Affairs team serves as an advocate for our customers in the energy policy sphere. From attending legislative sessions, to meeting with lawmakers, to writing and submitting comments during the rulemaking process, they work at the state/provincial and federal level to encourage, advance, and protect retail choice in North America. The ERCOT G&RA team is comprised of eight individuals dedicated to issues and advocacy in the region.
