The Board of Directors for California public power utility Imperial Irrigation District on Aug. 15 voted unanimously for Jamie Asbury, the current IID Energy Department Manager, to serve as the next general manager of IID.
After an extensive recruitment process, which began in January following the announcement of then General Manager Henry Martinez’s intent to retire, the board selected Asbury to lead the IID.
In doing so, she becomes the first woman in the district’s 112-year history to lead the district.
As Energy Department Manager, Asbury has directed the essential functions of the department, overseeing administration, regulatory policy, customer programs, operations, energy maintenance, generation and more to meet the district’s strategic plan and the department’s goals and objectives.
She has worked for IID since 2007, holding a number of positions within the Energy Department, General Counsel’s Office, and General Services Department.
During her time at the district, Asbury served as contract administration specialist on the All-American Canal Lining Project and was IID’s transactional team leader in the $80 million acquisition of the 20-megawatt SunPeak Solar facility.
She also negotiated and finalized contracts supporting the upgrade of IID’s S-Line 230kV transmission infrastructure, securing a third-party contribution of $40 million based upon a favorable litigation settlement.
Asbury also conducted an open season process that resulted in the Path 42 Upgrade, a Western Electricity Coordinating Council rated path, from 600 megawatts to 1,455 megawatts.
A member of the California State Bar, since March 2020, Asbury also served IID as Associate Counsel on energy issues, advising management, staff and a citizen advisory committee on regulatory, legislative, transmission planning and operations, wholesale markets, retail service and complex transactional matters.
She has also been actively engaged in stakeholder advocacy at the state and federal levels, including the California Energy Commission, California Public Utilities Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and California Independent System Operator Corporation and served as a key negotiator for all energy-related contracts and purchase/sale transactions.
