San Diego Gas & Electric Chairman Jessie T. Knight Jr., a well-known San Diego business and community leader who once headed the chamber of commerce, will retire from the utility company on Nov. 1.
Knight, 64, served as executive vice president of external affairs for SDG&E’s parent, Sempra Energy, and also as chairman of Southern California Gas Co.
Steven D. Davis, currently president and chief operating officer of SDG&E, will succeed Knight as executive vice president of external affairs and corporate strategy for Sempra.
“We are pleased to add Steve Davis to our senior executive team,” said Debra L. Reed, chairman and CEO of Sempra. “In his 35-year career with the Sempra Energy family of companies, Steve has managed nearly every aspect of our business. For much of that time, he has played a pivotal role in our successful external affairs strategy to engage key stakeholders.
“We also wish Jessie Knight well in his retirement, after a long and distinguished career in both the private and public sectors. He has made an extremely positive impact on our company and industry, as well as the San Diego community.”
Knight joined Sempra in 2006 and served as CEO of SDG&E from 2010 to 2014. He became chairman of SDG&E and SoCalGas in 2014.
From 1999 to 2006, Knight was president and CEO of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. From 1993 to 1999, Knight served as commissioner for the California Public Utilities Commission, after being appointed by then-Gov. Pete Wilson. Prior to his appointment as a CPUC commissioner, Knight was employed as executive vice president of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.
From 1985 to 1992, Knight was vice president of marketing for the San Francisco Chronicle and San Francisco Examiner newspapers. He began his corporate career in 1975 with Dole Food Company, where he worked 10 years in both domestic and international operations.
Knight is a board member of the Seattle-based Alaska Air Group and Alaska Airlines, life member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York and member of the corporate council of the Hoover Institution of Stanford University. He also is a trustee of the UC San Diego Foundation. For Sempra Energy, he serves on the boards of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Energy Institute and the Inter-American Dialogue.
Sempra, based in San Diego, is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company with 2014 revenues of $11 billion. The company’s 17,000 employees serve more than 32 million consumers worldwide.
