DULUTH, Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE) announced today that LaMarr Barnes has been named Chief Executive Officer of wholly owned subsidiary U.S. Water Services (U.S. Water).

Barnes replaces former CEO Allan Bly, who resigned his position after a 20-year career with the company.

Barnes has more than 25 years of experience in industrial water treatment and technology management. Hired in 2010 as Vice President of Marketing, Barnes assumed added responsibilities as Vice President of Marketing and Business Development before being named Senior Executive Vice President of Marketing and Strategy in 2015.

“I sincerely thank Al Bly for his service to U.S. Water as one of the company’s co-founders and leading our organization as CEO, and wish him the best in his new endeavors,” Barnes said. “I look forward to assuming the role of CEO and working with our talented employees on continuing customer service excellence and enhancements to our innovative products and services. Our initial focus will be on ensuring an effective transition and maintaining U.S. Water’s growth in an expanding market.”

Barnes is recognized as an expert in plant operations and integrated water-treatment program applications. He earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Illinois – Champaign, Urbana, and an MBA from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago.

Bob Adams, incoming ALLETE Chief Financial Officer and Chief Risk Officer, echoed Barnes’ thanks to Bly, and said he is confident in Barnes’ leadership and knowledge of U.S. Water’s culture and customers.

“As senior executive vice president, LaMarr has played a large role in U.S. Water’s recent growth, both organically by adding customers through superior service and also through strategic acquisitions,” Adams said. “We foresee a seamless transition as LaMarr and the U.S. Water leadership team continues to seek growth opportunities by providing sustainable solutions for customers. ALLETE believes the demand for sustainable water management solutions will increase as large users seek ways to enhance efficiency and improve their bottom line."

Headquartered in St. Michael, Minnesota, U.S. Water has a national footprint and serves a growing and diverse mix of about 4,600 industrial customers, including a significant number of Fortune 500 companies. U.S. Water provides integrated water management for industry, combining chemical, equipment, engineering and service for customized solutions to reduce water and energy usage and improve efficiency.

U.S. Water helps customers achieve efficient and sustainable use of their water and energy systems, and is a leading provider to industries such as biofuels, power generation, oil and gas, and health care.

ALLETE, Inc. is an energy company headquartered in Duluth, Minnesota. In addition to U.S. Water Services, ALLETE owns two electric utilities, Minnesota Power and Superior Water, Light and Power of Wisconsin; ALLETE Clean Energy, based in Duluth; and BNI Energy in Bismarck, North Dakota; and has an eight percent equity interest in the American Transmission Co. More information about ALLETE is available at www.allete.com. ALE-CORP

The statements contained in this release and statements that ALLETE may make orally in connection with this release that are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and investors are directed to the risks discussed in documents filed by ALLETE with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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