Utility CEOs Gain 16% as Energy Bill Concerns Grow
The CEOs of the top U.S. utilities got a 16% pay raise last year, pushing average compensation to $12.3 million as energy bill pressure kept building for customers. The review, based on companies’ financial records, found pay gains at 38 of 51 utilities and showed 38 CEOs collected $82 million in raises.
Jonathan Kim and Energy Bill Costs
Jonathan Kim, a research associate with the Energy and Policy Institute, said the findings “feel unjust at face value” and added, “It’s the idea that we should be footing the bill for these people’s grotesquely large salaries.” Utility bills are up as much as 40% in some regions since 2021, and consumers paid as much as 6.7% more on electric bills between 2024 and 2025.
The review said customers for the utilities examined have collectively paid more than $5 billion for CEO compensation since 2017, when average pay has risen 47%. That period also included 13 million power shutoffs in 2025, according to federal data, a separate measure of pressure on household accounts.
Bill Ferhman at AEP
Bill Ferhman received the largest pay increase among the executives named in the review. His compensation package rose by $23 million, or 176%, to $36.6 million, while American Electric Power turned off customers’ service 173,000 times.
Tim Cawley’s compensation jumped by $4.9 million, or 33%, to about $20 million, and Chris Womack received a $4.3 million, or 18%, increase to $28 million. John Ketchum was the nation’s third highest-paid CEO in 2025 with a $24 million compensation package.
Florida Power & Light Rates
Florida Power & Light requested approval from state regulators for a record-breaking $6.9 billion rate hike. The company’s request adds another cost issue to the compensation figures and keeps the focus on how utility pricing decisions and executive pay are moving in the same direction for many customers.
Con Edison, Southern Company and American Electric Power each defended their pay structures in statements cited in the review. Con Edison said, “Executive compensation is designed to attract and retain the leadership required to operate one of the most complex energy systems in the world, drive Con Edison’s nation-leading reliability and deliver on New York’s clean energy goals. The majority of executive compensation is performance based and paid by shareholders.”
Southern Company said, “Our performance-based executive compensation program is directly tied to what matters most to our business – delivering clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy while running our business efficiently and keeping costs down.” AEP said, “This compensation structure aligns leadership incentives with the long-term interests of customers, communities, and shareholders.”
