Board of Directors

Robert T. Booth, K.C.

Corporate Director

Prior to his retirement in December 2022, Mr. Booth was a partner in the law firm Bennett Jones LLP, based in Calgary, Alberta. 

Mr. Booth’s legal practice covered many areas of the natural resources, energy, defence and security fields, including client representation in oil and gas exploration, production and marketing, major pipeline transportation and liquefied natural gas projects, uranium mining and production, power generation and transmission, and energy utility businesses.

Mr. Booth serves on the boards of not-for-profit organizations and has served as the CEO and Chair of Milit-Air Inc., a federal not-for-profit company with a role in training military pilots in Canada, since 2005.

Mr. Booth obtained a B.Eng. degree from the Royal Military College of Canada in 1974, and an LL.B. from Dalhousie University in 1977. In 2009, he obtained his ICD.D certification from the Director Education Program of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Denis M. Ellard

Corporate Director

Prior his retirement in 2003, Mr. Ellard was Senior Vice President Business Development, ATCO. Over his 35 year career, Mr. Ellard held several senior positions within the organization, including Senior Vice President and General Manager, Northwestern Utilities Limited; Senior Vice President, Canadian Utilities Limited; and President, ATCO Singlepoint Ltd. His responsibilities included oversight  of  operations,  management, and regulatory matters, as well as reviews of risk, general safety, and environmental issues. Mr. Ellard has served in various capacities on several community and industry boards, including the Alberta Economic Development Authority.

Mr. Ellard has a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA with a major in Finance from the University of Alberta.

Michael R.P. Rayfield

Corporate Director

Mr. Rayfield was Vice Chair, Investment and Corporate Banking, BMO Capital Markets until 2013. He was responsible for senior corporate relationships in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K., and management of BMO’s investment banking business in China and India. Mr. Rayfield was also on the Canadian Management Committee. He has extensive international banking experience in South America, North America, and Australia. Mr. Rayfield is also a director of ATCO Structures & Logistics Ltd.

Mr. Rayfield is a graduate of The Chartered Institute of Bankers in the U.K.; the Senior Manager’s Program at Harvard Business School; and the Advanced Executive Program at J.L. Kellogg Graduate School, Northwestern University. He studied at Cambridge University and is a graduate of the Director Education Program at the Institute of Corporate Directors where he obtained extensive enterprise risk and financial strategy knowledge.

Robert J. Routs, PhD

Lead Director

Dr. Routs is Lead Director for the Board of Directors of ATCO Ltd. Until his retirement in 2008, he was an Executive Board Member at Royal Dutch Shell plc. Dr. Routs was responsible for the global refining, chemical, marketing, trading and renewable businesses. During his career, he held various senior management positions in the U.S., Canada and The Netherlands, including Chairman of Shell Canada prior to the buyout of the public shareholding by Royal Dutch Shell plc. Dr. Routs is also a director of ATCO Australia Pty Ltd, ATCO Structures & Logistics Ltd., and Neltume Ports S.A.

Dr. Routs has substantial experience in the refining and chemical industry with a strong focus on operational safety and sustainable operations to reduce the industry's impact on the environment.

Dr. Routs is an emeritus member of the International Advisory Council to the Economic Development Board of Singapore and received the distinguished Friend of Singapore medal.

Dr. Routs graduated in Chemical Engineering from the Technical University of Eindhoven in The Netherlands, where he also obtained a PhD in Technical Sciences. He completed the Program for Management Development at Harvard Business School in 1991.

Nancy C. Southern

CHAIR & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ATCO LTD. AND CANADIAN UTILITIES LIMITED

Nancy Southern is Chair & Chief Executive Officer of ATCO Ltd., and Chair & Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Utilities Limited, an ATCO company. Reporting to the Boards of Directors, she is responsible for the leadership, strategic direction, and operations of both companies. She also serves as Executive Vice President of Spruce Meadows Ltd. and is a founding Director of AKITA Drilling Ltd., a Director of Sentgraf Enterprises Limited, an Honorary Director of BMO Financial Group, and serves on the Rideau Hall Foundation Board of Directors.

Ms. Southern has long played a prominent role in advocating on social issues of global importance—most notably, the rights of Indigenous peoples and the role of women in business. She is an Honorary Chief of the Kainai (Blood Tribe of Alberta) who bestowed the name Aksistoowa'paakii, or Brave Woman, upon her in 2012.

Over the course of her career, Ms. Southern has served with many respected business and academic organizations. She is a member of the Business Council of Canada, the U.S. Business Council, the American Society of Corporate Executives, and is a Canadian member of the Trilateral Commission. She is also a member of the University of Calgary School of Public Policy Advisory Council.

In 2022, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce honoured Ms. Southern with the Canadian Business Leader Lifetime Achievement Award, in recognition of her corporate and community leadership. Also in 2022, she was honoured with the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal and was presented with an honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of Lethbridge.

In 2020, Ms. Southern was appointed to the Premier of Alberta’s Economic Recovery Council to help guide the province through the economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. That same year, she was awarded the British Empire Medal for services to British equestrian, military, and commercial interests in Alberta. In 2018, she received the Canadian Business Leader Award from the University of Alberta and was named a Distinguished Policy Fellow by the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy in recognition of her lifetime commitment to Canadian public policy. She was inducted as a Companion into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame in 2017.

Ms. Southern has been recognized by Fortune on its list of the “50 Most Powerful Women Outside of the U.S.” as well as its list of the “50 Most Powerful Women in Business: The Global 50.” She has been named one of the “50 Most Important People in Canada” by Maclean’s.

Born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Ms. Southern studied economics and commerce at the University of Calgary.

Linda A. Southern-Heathcott 

Vice Chair, ATCO Ltd. and President & Chief Executive Officer, Spruce Meadows Ltd.

Ms. Southern-Heathcott is President & Chief Executive Officer of Spruce Meadows Ltd., an internationally recognized equestrian facility in Calgary, Alberta. As a former professional equestrian rider, Ms. Southern-Heathcott was a member of the Canadian Equestrian Team for nine years and competed in the 1996 Olympic Summer Games in Atlanta, Georgia. She is also a founding director and currently serves as the executive Chair & Chief Executive Officer of AKITA Drilling Ltd., an oil and gas drilling contractor with operations throughout North America. Ms. Southern-Heathcott brings significant management and business experience to the Board and was appointed Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Canadian Utilities in 2017 and of ATCO Ltd. in 2016.

Ms. Southern-Heathcott also serves on the Boards of ATCO Structures & Logistics Ltd. and Sentgraf Enterprises Ltd. She is Chair of Travel Alberta and on the Telus Calgary Community Board.

In 2010, Ms. Southern-Heathcott received her ICD.D certification from the Director Education Program of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

In 2018, Ms. Southern-Heathcott was named an Honorary Lieutenant Colonel of the King's Own Calgary Regiment. In 2020, she was awarded a British Empire medal by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for services to British equestrian, military, and commercial interests in Alberta, Canada.

Norman M. Steinberg

Vice Chair, BFL Canada

Mr. Steinberg is a Director and Vice Chair of BFL Canada and Chair of the Nominating & Governance Committee. 

From 2017 to 2019, he was Chair Emeritus of the law firm Norton Rose Fulbright Canada previously holding the positions of Co-Chair, Chair and Global Chair of Norton Rose Fulbright.  During his legal career, Mr. Steinberg focused on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, privatizations and corporate governance.

Mr. Steinberg currently serves as Co-Chair of Dorel Industries Inc. and is Chair of its Corporate Governance & Nominating Committee, Director of Fiera Capital Corporation and Chair of its Nominating and Governance Committee, Co-Chair of Women in Governance, and member of the Board of Directors and Organizing Committee of the Australia-Canada Economic Leadership Forum.  He is also Senior Advisor to Persistence Capital Partners, Strategic Advisor of Voyager Metals Inc., a Member of the Board of Advisors of Alexa Translations, and Chair of the Board of Governors of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra.

Mr. Steinberg has a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Civil Law from McGill University in Montreal, Canada.

Roger J. Urwin, PhD, C.B.E.

Corporate Director

Dr. Urwin is the Lead Director of Canadian Utilities, a director of ATCO Ltd., Chair of the Board of Directors of ATCO Australia Pty Ltd., and Vice-Chair of LUMA Energy, LLC. He has worked in gas, electric and telecom utilities throughout his career. He retired at the end of 2006 as Group Chief Executive of National Grid plc. He played a key role in establishing National Grid's international strategy and its successful expansion into the U.S., creating one of the largest investor-owned utility companies in the world. Dr. Urwin was the Managing Director and Chief Executive of London Electricity from 1990 to 1995. He was non-executive Chairman of Utilico Investments Limited until October 2015 and has been a special advisor to Global Infrastructure Partners, an international infrastructure investment fund. He was Chair of Alfred McAlpine plc from 2006 to 2008.

Dr. Urwin is a Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

Dr. Urwin has a Physics degree and a PhD from the University of Southampton, U.K.

Susan R. Werth

Corporate Director

Ms. Werth retired as Senior Vice President & Chief Administration Officer, ATCO Ltd. and Canadian Utilities Limited in May 2014. In this role Ms. Werth was responsible for Human Resources, Corporate Secretarial, Marketing and Communications, Security, Real Estate, Aviation and Administration. She was Chair of ATCO’s Disclosure, Management Pension, Crisis Management, and Donations & Sponsorship Committees. She was Vice President, Administration, ATCO Group from 1995 to 2000.  During her career, Ms. Werth has gained a wealth of experience and brings significant insight into all aspects of ATCO's business. Ms. Werth is also on the Board of ATCO Structures & Logistics Ltd. and Sentgraf Enterprises Ltd.