# Mac McFarland

> Mark A. “Mac” McFarland is the Houston-based CEO and a director of Talen Energy. An engineer by training, he previously led Luminant, GenOn and California Resources Corporation. At Talen, he has overseen the Amazon nuclear power relationship and power plant acquisitions. He remains CEO as of October 22, 2026, with Terry Nutt scheduled to succeed him on January 1, 2027.

- **Role:** Chief Executive Officer and Director at Talen Energy
- **Organizations:** Talen Energy, California Resources Corporation, Carbon TerraVault, GenOn Energy, Luminant, Energy Future Holdings, Exelon, Nuclear Energy Institute
- **Education:** BS in Civil Engineering, Environmental Concentration, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Master of Business Administration, University of Delaware
- **Known for:** Oversaw Talen’s expanded Amazon nuclear power agreement for 1,920 MW at full contract quantity through 2042., Led Talen at its July 2024 Nasdaq listing., Led CRC as permanent CEO following its financial restructuring.

## Career timeline

- **1995** — Received professional engineer license.
- **1999–2008** — Held roles at Exelon, including senior vice president of corporate development.
- **2008–2013** — Chief commercial officer at Luminant and executive vice president of corporate development and strategy at Energy Future Holdings.
- **2013–2016** — CEO of Luminant.
- **2017–2018** — President and CEO of GenOn Energy; also served as executive chairman.
- **2020** — Joined CRC’s board at its October emergence from bankruptcy; became interim CEO at year-end.
- **2021** — Named permanent president and CEO of CRC on March 22.
- **2023** — Joined Talen as CEO and director in May, at emergence from restructuring.
- **2024** — Rang Nasdaq opening bell for Talen’s first trading day on July 10.
- **2025** — Oversaw expanded Amazon agreement and completed Freedom and Guernsey acquisitions.
- **2026** — Talen completed Cornerstone acquisition in June and announced CEO succession in September.
- **2027 (planned)** — Terry Nutt to become CEO January 1; McFarland to advise until retirement in March.

## Achievements

- Oversaw Talen’s expanded Amazon nuclear power agreement for 1,920 MW at full contract quantity through 2042.
- Led Talen at its July 2024 Nasdaq listing.
- Led CRC as permanent CEO following its financial restructuring.
- Oversaw Talen’s acquisitions of Freedom, Guernsey and the Cornerstone assets.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Talen announced Terry Nutt would succeed McFarland as CEO on January 1, 2027. McFarland will remain CEO and director through year-end, then senior advisor until retirement in March 2027.
- **2026-06** — Talen completed its Cornerstone acquisition on June 15.
- **2025-12** — Terry Nutt became president and Cole Muller CFO; McFarland remained CEO.
- **2025-11** — Talen completed Freedom and Guernsey acquisitions.
- **2025-06** — Talen expanded its Amazon power purchase agreement to 1,920 MW at full contract quantity through 2042.

## Links

- Website: https://www.talenenergy.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mac-mcfarland-72146832

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/mac-mcfarland
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-22