Michael R. Niggli is the president and chief operating officer (COO) of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), one of Sempra Energy’s regulated California utilities.

In 2006 he was named COO. He was named president and COO in 2010. Previously, from 2000 to 2006, he was president of Sempra Generation where he was responsible for development, operation and maintenance of merchant power plants and energy infrastructure throughout North America. Prior to joining Sempra Energy in 2000, he was chairman and chief executive officer of Nevada Power Company and then Sierra Pacific Resources. He guided the company through the deregulation process in Nevada and achieved the highest J. D. Powers and Associates’ customer satisfaction rating of any electric utility in the western United States.

He has also had senior executive responsibilities for strategic planning, customer service, fuels acquisition, marketing and sales at Entergy Corporation. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from California State University in Long Beach and a master’s degree in electrical engineering from San Diego State University. He founded the graduate program in power engineering at San Diego State University. He has provided expert testimony on electric and gas utility matters before numerous legislative committees, public service commissions and city councils at the federal, state and local levels.

He currently is on the Board of the Great Basin National Park Foundation and is co-chair of the Dean’s Advisory Council for Engineering, California State University, Long Beach.