UPDATE 1-Southwest Gas names new finance chief
(Adds appointment details, background)
Nov 7 (Reuters) - Southwest Gas Holdings Inc on Monday appointed Robert Stefani as its chief financial officer, effective Nov. 30.
Stefani will succeed Gregory Peterson, who had announced his retirement in May after more than 26 years in the company.
Peterson's move to retire came after Southwest's settlement with Carl Icahn that resulted in the replacement of the company's chief executive officer and four board seats to the billionaire investor.
The settlement ended a months-long battle Icahn launched with the Las Vegas, Nevada-based company in October as it pushed ahead with plans to buy Questar Pipelines for roughly $2 billion.
"We are confident he (Stefani) is the right person to take the company into the next financial chapter," Chief Executive Karen Haller said in a statement.
Stefani, who is currently the CFO of Exelon Corp unit PECO Energy, has worked with the energy firm and its parent for over 10 years, according to his LinkedIn profile. (Reporting by Aishwarya Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Maju Samuel)
