SAN DIEGO, Sept. 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of the company's ongoing leadership succession process, the board of directors of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE) today announced several key executive appointments, as well as a realignment of some of the company's major subsidiaries.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110108/SEMPRAENERGYLOGO)

Effective Oct. 1, Mark A. Snell will become president of Sempra Energy, overseeing the company's infrastructure and international businesses.  Snell, who currently serves as Sempra Energy's executive vice president and chief financial officer, succeeds Neal E. Schmale in the role of president.  

As announced previously, Schmale, 64, is retiring later this year.  He will remain as chief operating officer and continue as a member of Sempra Energy's board of directors until his retirement Nov. 1.

Also effective Oct. 1, Joseph A. Householder will succeed Snell as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Sempra Energy.  Householder currently serves as senior vice president, controller and chief accounting officer of the company.

Both Snell and Householder will report to Debra L. Reed, chief executive officer of Sempra Energy.  Effective Nov. 1, when Schmale retires, Michael W. Allman and Jessie J. Knight, Jr., the current chief executive officers of Southern California Gas Co. and San Diego Gas & Electric, respectively, also will report directly to Reed.

Additionally, Reed announced today that, effective Jan. 1, 2012, Sempra Generation, Sempra Pipelines & Storage and Sempra LNG will be consolidated into two new operating units reporting to Snell:  Sempra International and Sempra U.S. Gas & Power.  

All of Sempra Energy’s international operations and Sempra LNG will be part of Sempra International and led by George S. Liparidis.  Liparidis currently is president and chief executive officer of Sempra Pipelines & Storage.  Sempra Energy has operations in Mexico, Chile, Peru and Argentina.

Sempra Energy’s U.S. operations outside of its two California utilities will be part of Sempra U.S. Gas & Power and led by Jeffrey W. Martin.  Martin currently is president and chief executive officer of Sempra Generation.  

After Sempra International begins operating next year, Darcel L. Hulse, 64, president and chief executive officer of Sempra LNG, will report to Snell as a senior advisor until Hulse's planned retirement in May 2012.

Reed was elected chief executive officer of Sempra Energy in June.  As previously announced, Donald E. Felsinger continues as executive chairman of the company until his planned retirement in 2012.

"Today's appointments continue our orderly leadership succession process," said Reed.  "Over the past decade, Mark Snell and Joe Householder have served as key members of our executive team.  They have the management experience and demonstrated leadership to help advance our strategic vision.  Furthermore, we are making some structural changes in our organization to better align with the strategic direction of the company."

Snell, 55, has served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Sempra Energy since 2006.  Previously, he was group president of Sempra Global, the former umbrella for Sempra Energy's businesses outside its two California utilities.  Snell first joined Sempra Energy in 2001 as vice president of corporate planning and development and, since, has served in a series of increasingly responsible management roles.  Previously, he held chief financial officer positions with Earth Tech, Inc., Dames & Moore, Inc., and Latham & Watkins LLP.  Snell holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from San Diego State University.

Householder, 56, has been senior vice president and controller of Sempra Energy since 2006.  He joined Sempra Energy in 2001 as vice president of corporate tax.  Previously, he was a partner in the national tax office of PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP and also held several key management positions at Unocal Corp.  Householder holds a law degree from Loyola Law School and a bachelor's degree in business administration from University of Southern California.  

Liparidis, 52, has been president of Sempra Pipelines & Storage since 2005 and added the title of chief executive officer in 2006.  From 1998 to 2005, he led Sempra Energy's international operations.  He first joined the Sempra Energy companies in 1980 as an associate engineer with San Diego Gas & Electric.  Liparidis holds a master's degree in business administration from San Diego State University and a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Utah.

Martin, 49, has been president and chief executive officer of Sempra Generation since 2010.  Previously, from 2006 to 2010, he was vice president of investor relations for Sempra Energy.  Martin first joined Sempra Energy in 2004 as a principal in the company's strategic planning group.  Previously, he served in executive positions with TruePricing, Inc., Constellation New Energy and UniSource Energy Corp., and as an attorney in the firm Snell & Wilmer LLP.  Martin holds a law degree from the University of Miami, a master's degree in administration from the University of Texas, El Paso, and a bachelor's degree in engineering from the U.S. Military Academy.

Sempra Energy, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2010 revenues of $9 billion.  The Sempra Energy companies' 17,500 employees serve more than 31 million consumers worldwide.

This press release contains statements that are not historical fact and constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These statements can be identified by words like "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "potential," "target," "depends," or similar expressions, or discussions of strategies, plans or intentions.  Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance.  They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions.  Future results may differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements.  Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon various assumptions involving judgments with respect to the future and other risks, including, among others: local, regional, national and international economic, competitive, political, legislative and regulatory conditions and developments; actions by the California Public Utilities Commission, California State Legislature, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, California Energy Commission, California Air Resources Board, and other regulatory, governmental and environmental bodies in the United States and other countries where the company does business; capital market conditions and inflation, interest and exchange rates; energy markets, including the timing and extent of changes and volatility in commodity prices; the availability of electric power, natural gas and liquefied natural gas; weather conditions and conservation efforts; war and terrorist attacks; business, regulatory, environmental and legal decisions and requirements; the status of deregulation of retail natural gas and electricity delivery; the timing and success of business development efforts; the resolution of litigation; and other uncertainties, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of the company.  These risks and uncertainties are further discussed in the reports that Sempra Energy has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  These reports are available through the EDGAR system free-of-charge on the SEC's website, www.sec.gov, and on the company's website at www.sempra.com.

Sempra Generation, Sempra LNG and Sempra Pipelines and Storage are not the same company as the utility, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) or Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), and Sempra Generation, Sempra LNG and Sempra Pipelines & Storage are not regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission.

SOURCE Sempra Energy