• CERAWeek
  • March 18 - 22, 2024

Calvin Butler

Exelon Corporation

President & Chief Executive Officer

Calvin G. Butler Jr. is president and chief executive officer of Exelon. Butler oversees Exelon’s six local electric and natural gas companies -- Atlantic City Electric, BGE, ComEd, Delmarva Power, PECO and Pepco. Together, they form the nation’s largest utility company by customer count, serving approximately 10 million electric and gas customers in New Jersey, Maryland, Illinois, Delaware, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia. He serves as chairman of each utility’s board and is a member of Exelon’s executive committee. Butler is a past chair of the Gridwise Alliance, an advocacy organization promoting modernization and innovation for the nation’s electrical grid, and currently serves on the Board of Directors for RLI Corp as a member of its audit and nominations/governance committees. In addition, Butler previously served on the board of M&T Bank Corporation and M&T Bank, its principal banking subsidiary, as a member of its nomination, compensation and governance committee. Professional History Prior to being promoted to CEO on Dec. 31, 2022, Butler had been president and chief operating officer of Exelon. Previously, he served in roles of increasing responsibility at Exelon, including senior executive vice president and COO (2021), Exelon Utilities CEO (2019) and as CEO of BGE from 2014 to 2019. Prior to that role, Butler served as BGE’s senior vice president for Regulatory and External Affairs. In addition, he has held various leadership positions at ComEd, including as senior vice president of Corporate Affairs and vice president of Governmental and Legislative Affairs. Before joining Exelon in 2008, he held senior leadership roles in external affairs as well as in manufacturing with the print, digital and supply chain solutions company R.R. Donnelley. Butler spent his early career with Central Illinois Light Company (CILCORP, Inc.), where he worked in government affairs, legal and strategy. Civic Involvement In addition to serving on the Exelon Board, Butler also serves as chair of each Exelon operating company board — BGE, ComEd, PECO and PHI. He is the vice chair of the Institute of International Education (IIE) and also serves on the board of RLI Corp. (NYSE: RLI). He will be a new member of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago. He also serves on several nonprofit boards in areas where Exelon operates, and is on the Board of his undergraduate alma mater, Bradley University in Peoria, Ill. Butler also serves on the James Madison Council of the Library of Congress. He has been recognized by several organizations for his leadership and community commitment. In 2021, The Daily Record named Butler to their “Power 100” list and has singled him out as one of its top 35 Influential Marylanders, as well as listed him three times as one of Maryland’s “Most Admired CEOs.” In 2020, he was honored with the BEYA Chairman’s Award, recognizing Black leaders for their meaningful contributions to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). That same year, he was named among Black Enterprise magazine’s “Most Influential Black Executives in Corporate America,” and as Zpryme’s “ETS Thought Leader of the Year,” honoring those with the “inventive and brave vision needed to inspire the global energy ecosystem toward sustainable modernization.” In 2019, the Boy Scouts of America honored him with the Whitney M. Young, Jr. Service Award and he has been named by Baltimore magazine as one of its “Top Ten Baltimoreans.” He is an active member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Education Butler earned a bachelor’s degree from Bradley University in Peoria, Ill., and a Juris Doctor degree from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Mo. He received an honorary doctorate of Humane Letters from Morgan State University in 2014.

Sessions With Calvin Butler

Thursday, 9 March

  • 08:50am - 09:30am (CST) / 09/mar/2023 02:50 pm - 09/mar/2023 03:30 pm

    The Electrification of Everything?

    Power & Renewables
    Electricity accounts for roughly 20% of global final energy demand today, up from around 15% twenty years ago. Accelerating electrification is considered a key pathway to a low-carbon future as wind, solar and other zero-carbon electricity sources continue to expand around the world. In sectors like transportation, electric vehicles (EVs) are already growing rapidly, and charging infrastructure is being built—but requiring significant expansion. In other sectors, such as industrial heat and buildings, however, electrification has just begun and remains a complex process involving more than just a technology substitution. What are the opportunities and challenges in continued electrification? What technologies are available to convert gas-based heating to electricity? How will electrification change utility load profiles as more buildings are heated with electricity? What new infrastructure is required to support winter peak demand? What implications are there for utilities and will the generation portfolio need to change to meet new winter demand? How will infrastructure needs be met as more EVs hit the road? What commercial models are there for EV charging?