About The Essex Partnership

The Essex Partnership provides strategic consulting services to the energy and environmental sectors. The Partnership was formed in 2005 through the collaboration of Mr. Fred Szufnarowski and Mr. Bruce DiGennaro who collectively have spent over 50 years working with businesses, utilities, and government agencies to solve complex engineering, regulatory and resource management issues.


To meet our clients’ growing business challenges, The Partnership has recently expanded with the addition of Ms. Donna Powell as a partner specializing in strategic planning and communications. Together, Mr. Szufnarowski, Mr. DiGennaro, and Ms. Powell offer a unique set of skills and expertise in engineering, planning, business, and communications that provide a solid foundation for strategic thinking and sound decision-making.


The partners have worked for a number of large corporations, utilities, small businesses and financial institutions across the country, providing analysis and strategic advice on energy assets and associated environmental resources. They have also developed and conducted training seminars focused on regulatory compliance, deregulated markets, and facilitation and negotiation techniques. With the addition of Ms. Powell to the team, our business experience is expanded to include integrated communications programs for regional, national and international organizations, support for M&A initiatives, internal and external stakeholder engagement, brand positioning and consumer marketing.

• Asset Management and Resource Optimization
• Acquisitions and Divestitures
• FERC Hydroelectric Licensing and Compliance
• Environmental Resource Management and Facilitation
• Internal and External Stakeholder Relations
• Brand Positioning and Reputation Management
• Organizational Change and Crisis Communications

Being a small company, we are able to offer highly responsive, personalized service that is focused squarely on our clients’ success.

• The Essex Partnership, L.L.C. -Partner and Senior Environmental Planner. The Essex Partnership is a newly formed company specializing in providing strategic energy and environmental consulting services. At the Partnership Mr. DiGennaro specializes in negotiating complex regulatory issues involving diverse stakeholder interests engaged in land, water, and energy resource planning.
• Kleinschmidt Associates -Owner and Senior Planner. Directed and managed large-scale water resource and energy projects throughout the country including: hydroelectric licensings and compliance plans; water supply planning and policy studies; multi-party negotiations and collaborative stakeholder processes; recreation and shoreline management planning; and ecosystem restoration planning. Conducted training workshops on National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance, Applicant Prepared Environmental Assessments (APEA), facilitation and negotiation, and river restoration. Representative clients included the California Bay Delta Authority, New York Power Authority, Partnership for Narragansett Bay, Trust for Public Land, Alabama Power Company, Portland General Electric, PacifiCorp, and NRG.
• EDAW, Inc. -Senior Associate. Responsible for managing and overseeing water and energy resource policy and planning projects. Formulated testimony for State Water Resources Control Board hearings; facilitated discussions between urban, agricultural and environmental water interests regarding the Central Valley Project Improvement Act and the Bay-Delta Accord; directed planning and management studies for numerous hydroelectric project relicensings; assisted with development of water supply plans for several large urban water suppliers; prepared a strategic plan for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, and provided policy analysis and advice to the California Urban Water Agencies.
• EA Engineering, Science and Technology, Inc. -Resource Planner. Specialized in designing and conducting recreation and natural resource management studies for hydroelectric project relicensings. Organized national conference on instream flows for recreation. Worked throughout California, the Northwest, and the Southeast. Representative clients included Pacific Gas and Electric Co., Turlock Irrigation District, Eugene Water and Electric Board, Georgia Power, and the East Bay Municipal Utility District.
• U.S. Bureau of Land Management -Land and Recreation Planner. Assisted with day-to-day management of over 2 million acres of public lands.

Experience:  34 years of industry experience working with Independent Power Producers, utilities, and financial institutions on bio-mass, diesel, gas turbine, hydroelectric, solid fuel and wind generating projects.

• The Essex Partnership, L.L.C. -Partner and Senior Engineer. The Essex Partnership is a newly formed company providing strategic energy and environmental consulting services to decision makers and project owners. At the Partnership Mr. Szufnarowski specializes in strategic assessments, planning studies and asset management services.
• Kleinschmidt Associates -Owner and Vice President. Head of the Management Consulting Department which provided acquisition and asset management services to project owners, buyers and financial institutions. Directed and managed large-scale energy projects throughout the country including: acquisitions of generating projects; lenders' due diligence evaluations; planning and optimization studies; upgrades; overhauls of generating projects; hydroelectric licensings and post licensing compliance. Conducted training workshops on restructuring of the power industry and ancillary services in deregulated markets. Representative clients included AES, Bank America, BNP Paribas, CDG Co., Con Ed, Central Vermont Public Service, Heller Financial, Northbrook Energy, Northeast Utilities, Northwestern Energy, NRG, South Carolina Electric & Gas, US Gen and Verizon.
• Charter Oak Energy -Director of Engineering. Responsible for technical development and Asset Management of an international Independent Power Producer. Led acquisition efforts for coal, gas turbine and hydroelectric projects. Headed the technical development of biomass, gas turbine and wind projects. Representative projects include two biomass projects in India, a combustion turbine project in Colombia, 210 MW coal plant in India, a gas turbine project in Argentina, eight hydroelectric projects in Argentina in Argentina totaling 1,100 MW and a 50 MW wind farm in Costa Rica.
• Northeast Utilities -Principal Engineer, Fossil-Hydro Generation. Directed and managed the construction of new generation projects, repowering and upgrading existing projects, and conducted optimization and planning studies. Led the due diligence effort of generation assets for NU's successful acquisition of Public Service Company New Hampshire. Prior to being Principal Engineer, was a Senior Engineer and worked on the Mt. Tom Coal Conversion Project and the construction of the Millstone 3 Nuclear project.
• Coe East Inc - Engineer. Worked on development projects, general civil, hydrologic studies, photogrammetry and surveying.

Experience:  25 years of strategic communications planning and program management work with energy marketers, utilities, financial services firms, sales organizations, blue-chip corporate marketing partners and the news media.

• The Essex Partnership, L.L.C. -Partner and Strategic Planner. Ms. Powell recently joined the Partnership to provide enhanced consulting support to existing clients and to diversify the firm’s project base. She specializes in stakeholder outreach, compliance program planning and facilitation, executive support, internal communications, and external affairs.
• Northeast Utilities -Competitive Group Communications Manager. Headed corporate and marketing communications for all non-regulated subsidiaries, from the launch of Select Energy, Inc. and its growth to 11-state electric and natural gas marketing operations ($2.5 billion annual revenue), to 2006 divestiture supporting NU’s shift in strategic focus. Developed industry-leading customer acquisition and relationship management programs to maximize direct sales, indirect channels and customer aggregations. Provided full-service corporate communications support for wholesale and retail marketing business lines, energy services companies, and competitive generation assets.
• Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust -National Advertising Manager for Subway restaurant chain in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Australia. Oversaw all advertising and promotional campaigns for the world’s fastest-growing franchise operation. Managed budget and integrated field resources in excess of $100 million annually. Developed and implemented system-wide communications and training programs for 9,000+ franchisees and 90 ad agencies in 450 local markets. Responsible for strategic alliances and marketing partnerships with Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, 20th Century Fox, Paramount Studios, NASCAR, U.S. Olympics, ESPN, MTV Networks, The Gallup Organization and Second Harvest.
• Cronin and Company, Inc. -Account Supervisor. Responsible for development, research and implementation of award-winning advertising and public relations campaigns for regional, national and international clients including United Technologies, Teleco Oilfield Services, The Marriott Corporation, Subway Restaurants and First Connecticut Bancorp.