James Sahagian
Vice President, Commercial Development

James Sahagian is vice president of commercial development for Sempra Generation, which operates power plants for competitive power markets in North America.

In his current position, Sahagian is responsible for the commercial development of new wind and solar energy investment opportunities.

Prior to this role, Sahagian served as vice president of corporate development for Sempra Energy where he focused on the long-term direction of the company and was responsible for identifying and developing new market opportunities. He also spearheaded Sempra Energy’s entry into renewable energy.

Previously, Sahagian was of vice president of commercial development for Sempra LNG, a subsidiary that leads Sempra Energy’s efforts to develop, build and operate liquefied natural gas (LNG) receipt terminals. In this position, Sahagian secured the commercial capacity contracts necessary for growth of the company’s LNG business.

Before joining Sempra LNG, Sahagian served as vice president of planning and analysis for Sempra Generation.

Prior to joining Sempra Energy, Sahagian was president of American Consumer Industries, a privately held company that owned and operated a number of independent power projects across the United States, as well as a San Francisco Bay Area photovoltaic manufacturing company. Sahagian was one of the founders of Pyropower Corporation, a San Diego-based energy generation equipment manufacturing and energy project development firm. Prior to that, he held management positions at Lurgi Corporation, an international engineering and construction company focusing on synthetic fuel plant design, and Envirotech Corporation, a leading manufacturer of water and air-pollution-control equipment.

Sahagian holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Massachusetts and a master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Connecticut.