Three Honored at Southern New England Energy Conference
At the Southern New England Energy Conference on September 25 in Newport, Rhode Island, John Bowman of F.F. Hitchcock received CEMA’s Marketer of the Year Award; Michael Devine of NORA received the Associate of the Year Award, and Ray Albrecht of Clean Fuels Alliance America received the Industry Service Award.
CEMA has presented a Marketer of the Year Award for over 60 years to marketers who have made significant contributions to the industry. The company of this year’s recipient, John Bowman of F. F. Hitchcock in Cheshire, Connecticut, has actually been in business longer than even that, as it was founded in 1870. Bowman’s outstanding contribution as the chair of CEMA’s Legislative Committee is being recognized in this award. In Connecticut, the “Green New Deal” bill was to mandate the conversion of 300,000 homes to heat pumps. F.F. Hitchcock is a diversified company selling not only heating fuels, but also full-service HVAC and plumbing. And they install heat pumps, too. His expertise on heat pumps, both their pros and cons, so impressed the legislative committee during hearings on the proposed bill that the chair, a fuel oil sceptic, wanted to learn more and ended up having breakfast with John along with more follow-up meetings. As a result of creating this positive relationship with a key legislator, the heat pump mandate in the bill was killed. Bowman was also instrumental in CEMA’s setting up Legislative Action Districts, which created decentralized member lobbying groups throughout the state to target influential legislators.
Michael Devine came to NORA with a deep understanding of the industry from his family’s retail
fuel oil business in Norwalk, Connecticut, Devine Brothers, to his cutting-edge work in biofuels at World Energy where he developed key national accounts including FedEx, UPS, Chevron, Ryder, Union Pacific Railroad and many others. Through the NORA programs he oversees, he ensures that consumers are aware of our industry’s move towards renewable heating fuels; that homeowners receive rebates to upgrade their equipment to modern, efficient boilers, furnaces and tanks; and that research and development at NORA’s lab keeps our industry’s technology second to none for decades to come. His Associate of the Year Award was presented jointly by the state execs from Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island at the Southern New England Energy Conference in September in Newport, Rhode Island.
Every sports team needs a go-to player, a clean-up hitter, who can nail the door shut on the
game. In this industry, that person is Ray Albrecht at Clean Fuels Alliance America. A 30-year
veteran of heating R & D, Albrecht has provided technical materials to address the Connecticut
Integrated Resource Plan, the Massachusetts Clean Heat Standard, the Massachusetts Alternative Portfolio Standard, the New York Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act Scoping Plan, various Rhode Island biofuel mandate proceedings, and many other legislative and regulatory proceedings. His Industry Service Award was presented jointly by the state execs from Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island at the conference in Newport.
Reprinted from the Oct. 2, 2025, issue of CEMA Pipeline, the newsletter of the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association.
