Press Releases

06/22/2020

AVANGRID Shareholders Overwhelmingly Approve All Proposals at Company’s First Virtual Annual Meeting

AVANGRID Shareholders Overwhelmingly Approve All Proposals at Company’s First Virtual Annual Meeting

ORANGE, Connecticut — June 22, 2020 — AVANGRID, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) shareholders overwhelmingly approved all proposals presented at the company’s 2020 annual meeting today. With approximately 98% of shares present by proxy, the vote indicates strong continued shareholder support for AVANGRID’s strategic direction and governance system. The meeting was held virtually in light of the ongoing public-health crisis caused by COVID-19, and in accordance with related government guidelines, to safeguard the health of all AVANGRID stakeholders. 


At the annual meeting, the AVANGRID shareholders voted to elect each of the 13 nominees to the Board of Directors to serve one-year terms expiring at AVANGRID’s 2021 annual meeting. The 13 members elected to AVANGRID’s Board of Directors include one new member, José Ángel Marra Rodríguez, Director of Human Resources, General Service & Corporate Security of Iberdrola, S.A. Additionally, the AVANGRID shareholders voted to approve the following items proposed by the Board of Directors, with at least 99% of the votes cast in favor of each proposal:

  • The ratification of the appointment of KPMG US, LLP as AVANGRID’s independent registered public accounting firm for 2020.
  • Advisory approval of the compensation of AVANGRID’s named executive officers as described in the 2020 proxy statement.

At today’s meeting, AVANGRID also bid farewell to its Chief Executive Officer (CEO), James P. Torgerson, who will retire tomorrow, June 23, 2020. Earlier this month, AVANGRID announced Dennis V. Arriola, previously Executive Vice President and Group President and Chief Sustainability Officer at Sempra Energy, will succeed Torgerson as CEO and join the AVANGRID Board of Directors on July 20, 2020. 
AVANGRID CEO James P. Torgerson commented, “It has been an honor to lead and serve AVANGRID through its first five years. I am grateful to Chairman Galán and the Board of Directors for allowing me to lead this company. In that time, the AVANGRID team has continued to advance on our goal to build the grid of the future and develop clean, smart solutions for our customers. I am proud of how far we have come together and where we stand today. I am especially proud of the dedication I have seen from the team over the past few months. All of our employees have gone above and beyond to ensure energy is delivered to our customers with safety as the number one priority. I have full confidence in the company’s future success and its ability to deliver a cleaner and more accessible energy model for customers and communities every day.”  
AVANGRID’s Board Chairman Ignacio Galán added, “On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank Jim for his dedication to AVANGRID over the past five years. Jim not only led the company through an extremely successful integration but has since championed AVANGRID as a leading sustainable energy company.”

Mr. Galán continued, “As demonstrated by our shareholders’ support for our proposals, we are pleased to have their confidence as we lead the clean energy transition in the U.S. Under the direction of our newly appointed CEO, Dennis V. Arriola, we will continue to execute on our strategy, delivering reliable and affordable service to millions of Americans and investing in a clean and smart energy future. We are confident in our ability to deliver long-term sustainable value to our shareholders and to contribute to economic growth and job creation in the U.S.”
The final voting results will be presented on a current report on Form 8-K that will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and posted on AVANGRID’s website, www.avangrid.com.

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About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $44 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, Avangrid has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital in 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 as one of the JUST 100 companies – a ranking of America’s best corporate citizens. In 2024, Avangrid ranked first among utilities and 12 overall. The company supports the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World’s Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com.

 

About Iberdrola: Iberdrola is one of the world's biggest energy companies and a leader in renewables, spearheading the energy transition to a low carbon economy. The group supplies energy to almost 100 million people in dozens of countries. With a focus on renewable energy, smart networks and smart solutions for customers, Iberdrola’s main markets include Europe (Spain, the United Kingdom, Portugal, France, Germany, Italy and Greece), the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. The company is also present in growth markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Ireland, Sweden and Poland, among others.

With a workforce of nearly 40,000 and assets in excess of €141.7 billion, across the world, Iberdrola helps to support 400,000 jobs across its supply chain, with annual procurement of €12.2 billion. A benchmark in the fight against climate change, Iberdrola has invested more than €130 billion over the past two decades to help build a sustainable energy model, based on sound environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles.