NEFI ANNOUNCES NEW PRESIDENT AND CEO: MICHAEL C. TRUNZO

WATERTOWN, Mass. – The New England Fuel Institute today announced it has selected Mr. Michael C. Trunzo as its new President and Chief Executive Officer, effective Monday, April 4, 2011.  In addition to serving as President and CEO of NEFI and its Education Foundation, Michael will also serve on the Board of Directors and the Board of Trustees.

‘Michael Trunzo brings an exceptional skill set and a background uniquely qualified to meet the challenges and opportunities we currently face as a trade association and as an industry,” said NEFI Chairman of the Board Howard Peterson of Peterson Oil Service in Worcester, Massachusetts.  ‘We are quite fortunate and we look forward to his leadership as we further advance our strategic plan and strengthen NEFI in service of its members and the industry,” Peterson said.

Michael comes to NEFI from the State University of New York (SUNY), where he was appointed Senior Associate Vice Chancellor in April 2002 and was promoted to Vice Chancellor for Government Relations in March 2008.  SUNY is a 64-campus system of higher education. Trunzo served as SUNY’s chief lobbyist and managed the Office of Government Relations, overseeing the University’s federal, state and local lobbying, as well as the University’s external affairs and employee-union relationships. Trunzo developed and managed the University’s legislative and public policy agendas, advocacy efforts and the implementation of its strategic plan relative to government relations and external affairs.  He also ran the New York Network, the state’s television station and production studio.

Mr. Trunzo comes to NEFI as no stranger to the retail petroleum industry.  Prior to his time at SUNY, from 1995 until 2002 Michael served as CEO of the Empire State Petroleum Association (ESPA), which represents motor fuel and home heating oil dealers in the State of New York.  Nor is he a stranger to politics.  Trunzo served as Chief of Staff to the New York State Lieutenant Governor and Executive Assistant to New York State Senator Kemp Hannon.  He has also held senior positions with the Town of Islip and the New York State Assembly.

‘I am honored to accept the position of President and CEO of NEFI,” Trunzo said.  ‘NEFI has a great history of serving the needs of home heating oil dealers and petroleum marketers regionally and nationally, and I will work diligently to continue that tradition.” 

Trunzo continued, ‘I also look forward to working closely with the six state associations and the Petroleum Marketers Association of America and our sister state organizations from throughout the country, as together we strive to ensure a better business environment and consumer offerings for all oilheat and petroleum companies.’

‘I believe NEFI members will be pleased with the decision and I welcome them to meet with and personally get to know Michael by stopping in the Watertown office or our next Board meeting, or by attending our upcoming Expo,” NEFI Chairman Peterson said, referring to the upcoming 34th Biennial North American Heating & Energy EXPO to be held in Boston, June 7-8 (details at www.nefiexpo.com).

Effective Monday, April 4th, Mr. Trunzo can be reached at (617) 924-1000 or by email at michael.trunzo@nefi.com.

###

NEFI is a non-profit, non-partisan member-benefits trade association that represents home heating businesses including Bioheat®, heating oil and propane dealers and related services companies in 31 states.