Natural Growth

Sporting a USF button down shirt without a tie, TECO Energy Inc. President and CEO John Ramil is about to enjoy two things he's been excited about in 2011: pleasant weather and a tour of the University of South Florida Polytechnic Institute's Center for Academic Medical Learning and Simulation.

The consistent weather has kept costs steady at the Tampa-based utility holding company, and the 90,000-square-foot research facility located in downtown Tampa embodies his goal to strengthen research in the area, particularly in the field of health science.

TECO recorded net income growth in the second and third quarters of 2011 compared with the same periods of the previous year. Of course the 2010 sale of a power distributor in Guatemala that was used to pay down parent debt and a $3 million customer refund were major factors in this disparity. But Ramil also credits the growing popularity of natural gas fueled vehicles — an area in which he says TECO builds the market.