Officers

Gordon van Welie

Gordon van Welie is president and CEO of ISO New England Inc., having previously served as the company’s executive vice president and chief operating officer. He joined ISO New England from Siemens Power Transmission & Distribution LLC, where he served as vice president and general manager of the Power Systems Control Division and was responsible for managing information technology solutions for electric companies. Before coming to Siemens, van Welie held several positions at ESKOM, South Africa’s electric utility based in Johannesburg. He has been a member of the National Academy of Engineering since 2017, and currently serves on the Board of Energy and Environmental Systems. In addition, van Welie belongs to the Executive Committee of the US National Committee of the International Council on Large Electric Systems (CIGRE), the Member Representatives Committee of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC), the ISO/RTO Council, and the IEEE Power & Engineering Society. He is the recipient of the 2023 Attwood Associates Award for ongoing contributions to CIGRE and its US National Committee, the 2017 Utility Variable-Generation Integration Achievement Award, and the 2016 IEEE Power & Energy Society Leadership in Power Award.

Vamsi Chadalavada

Dr. Vamsi Chadalavada, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, is responsible for Power System and Market Operations, Markets Development, System Planning, Information and Cyber Security Services, and Program Management. He previously served as the company’s Senior Vice President, Market and System Solutions. Before joining ISO New England in 2004, Dr. Chadalavada held a number of positions at Siemens Power Transmission and Distribution, most recently Vice President and General Manager of Siemens’ Energy Management and Information Systems (EMIS). In that position, he held the profit and loss responsibility for the division and was responsible for sales and marketing, product development, project delivery and support services for Siemens’ EMIS in North America and select regions in Europe, Asia, and South America. He holds a PhD in electrical and computer engineering from Iowa State University.

Peter T. Brandien

As Vice President, System Operations & Market Administration, Mr. Brandien is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the New England bulk power system and ensuring the fair administration of the region's wholesale electricity markets. This includes the Day-Ahead Energy & Load Response Markets, the Real-Time Energy, Reserve & Regulation Markets, and the Financial Transmission Rights & Forward Reserve Market Auctions, transmission and generation outage coordination, system restoration, operator training, NERC/NPCC compliance, and development of operating procedures. Additional responsibilities include the registration, auditing and verification of performance for demand resources as well as generator assets. Prior to joining ISO New England, Mr. Brandien was an employee of Northeast Utilities for 17 years, where he held various management positions in transmission engineering, operations and planning. Prior to that, he served in the U.S. Navy Submarine Force and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering.

Kathleen deCastro

Kathleen deCastro, Vice President of Human Resources and Chief People Diversity Officer, is responsible for ISO New England’s human resource and diversity, equity, and inclusion strategies. This includes overseeing programs and processes to attract, develop, and retain talent through competitive compensation and benefits programs, as well as ongoing education and professional development opportunities. She and her team provide consulting to the ISO’s business leaders on organizational design, lead company efforts on diversity, equity, and inclusion, and manage the company’s talent succession program. Ms. deCastro joined the ISO from The Travelers Companies, Inc. in Hartford, Connecticut, where she most recently served as vice president of Human Resources for their Small Commercial business segment. Prior to that, she served in top HR roles with JCJ Architecture, The Hanover Insurance Group, Sun Life Financial, and The Hartford, where she spent almost two decades in numerous human resources roles. She began her career in CIGNA’s Human Resources Rotational Program after receiving her Master of Arts degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from The University of New Haven.

Robert Ethier

Robert Ethier serves as Vice President, System Planning. He oversees ISO New England’s regional and interregional planning process, including development of the biennial Regional System Plan, analysis of new transmission and generation projects for New England, implementation of the FERC‑approved generator interconnection process, development of ISO findings for Transmission Cost Allocation, the execution of regional economic planning studies requested by stakeholders, and operation and support of the Forward Capacity Market in New England. Dr. Ethier previously served as Vice President, Market Operations; Vice President, Market Development; Director of Resource Adequacy; and Director of Market Monitoring. He also led the ISO’s efforts to implement the initial Forward Capacity Auction. Prior to joining ISO New England, Dr. Ethier consulted for Stratus Consulting Inc. and Hagler Bailly Consulting, Inc. He has authored papers on electricity price volatility, electricity auctions, and asset valuation, including papers in The Energy Journal, Land Economics, and the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management.

Anne C. George

As Vice President, Chief External Affairs and Communications Officer, Anne C. George directs ISO New England’s outreach to public officials, stakeholders, and the media. In this role, Ms. George is responsible for developing and executing the company’s communications strategy and leading state and federal policy activity. Before joining the ISO in 2008, she served five years as a Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control. During this time, Ms. George was active in national and regional bodies, serving as Chair of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ Committee on Electricity and as President of the New England Conference of Public Utilities Commissioners. Prior to her role at the Connecticut DPUC, Ms. George served as the Governor’s Special Counsel on Energy and Chief Legal Counsel.

Maria Gulluni

As Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary, Maria Gulluni is the principal legal adviser for ISO New England and is responsible for the company’s work with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the ISO’s Board of Directors. She joined the ISO in 2000 as Senior Counsel and was subsequently promoted to Assistant General Counsel, then Deputy General Counsel. Ms. Gulluni began her legal career as an associate in the corporate department at Shipman & Goodwin in Hartford, Connecticut, where she focused on mergers, acquisitions, and corporate transactions. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the YMCA of Greater Springfield.

Mark Karl

As Vice President, Market Development and Settlements, Mark Karl is responsible for the design and development of wholesale electricity markets and oversees the functions of Wholesale Market Design, Demand Resources Strategy, Market Settlements and Analysis, Market Operations Support Services, and the Chief Economist and his Economic Analysis Group. Mr. Karl previously served as Senior Director of Resource Adequacy in the ISO’s System Planning Department, where he was responsible for the operation of the Forward Capacity Auction, development of the load forecast and installed capacity requirements, and the auction qualification process. Prior to that, he served as Director of Market Development and Integration, designing markets and representing the ISO in stakeholder, regulatory, and legislative processes. Before joining the ISO in 2000, Mr. Karl was at Duquesne Light Company in Pittsburgh for nearly 20 years. During his tenure there, he was a key figure in leading the company through Pennsylvania’s transition to competitive markets, interacting extensively with state regulators and holding various roles—including engineer at fossil and nuclear plants—and others in finance and strategic planning, as well as regulatory and economic analysis.

Robert C. Ludlow

Robert Ludlow is Vice President and Chief Financial and Compliance Officer. He serves on the company’s Audit & Finance Committee as well as the Budget & Finance Committee of the New England Power Pool. Mr. Ludlow, a CPA, has more than 39 years of experience in the energy and accounting fields. He came to ISO New England at its inception in 1997. Prior to that, he worked in various public accounting and private company accounting roles, mostly in the metropolitan New York area.

Rudolf “Rudy” Pawul

As Vice President, Information and Cyber Security Services, Rudolf “Rudy” Pawul is responsible for ISO New England’s information technology (IT) functions. Mr. Pawul came to ISO-NE in 1999 as a system administrator, joining the company at the same time the region’s first wholesale power markets were launched. In his tenure, he has held a variety of roles of increasing scope and responsibility, including manager of System Support and IT Director, Infrastructure and Enterprise Support. Most recently, as IT Director of Development of Power System Support, he was in charge of the 24 x 7 energy management and markets systems for New England.