HOUSTON, June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Spectra Energy (NYSE: SE) today announced that Martha Wyrsch, president and CEO, Spectra Energy Transmission, the company's natural gas transmission business, was appointed by President George W. Bush to the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC). Wyrsch, along with 27 other appointees, will be officially sworn in during a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, July 8.

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Established in October, 2001, the NIAC advises the President, through the Secretary of Homeland Security, on the security of critical infrastructures, both physical and cyber, that support the United States' national security and economic sectors. The Council works to improve partnerships between the private and public sectors for safeguarding information systems infrastructures and provides counsel on a variety of issues, ranging from risk assessment & management to information sharing and protective strategies.

The NIAC is composed of up to 30 appointees, many of whom are senior-level executives representing major sectors of the economy -- energy, banking and finance, transportation, information technology and manufacturing. The Council also includes leaders from academia, state and local government, and law enforcement.

"Safeguarding the critical infrastructures that support our national security and our economy is vitally important," said Wyrsch. "I'm honored to serve on the Council and look forward to advising on key issues and enhancing cooperation between the private and public sectors."

The NIAC meets publicly four times a year, taking on four to six major studies, with the goal of delivering quality, well-researched reports within 12 months of inception. The President meets with the Council at least once a year and regularly gives directives regarding "issues of interest."

With more than 25 years of relevant industry and functional experience, Wyrsch currently serves as president and CEO of Spectra Energy Transmission. She is on the board of directors for Spectra Energy Corp, and is chairman of Spectra Energy Corp's publicly-traded major limited partnership, Spectra Energy Partners, LP. Spectra Energy was spun off from Duke Energy in January 2007.

Wyrsch joined Duke Energy in September 1999 as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary for Duke Energy Field Services. She held numerous senior leadership positions within the corporation's law department, culminating with the role of group vice president, general counsel and secretary. In this capacity she was responsible for the company's legal affairs and compliance activities, as well as audit, security, business continuity, ethics and insurance. Wyrsch was named president and chief executive officer of Duke Energy Gas Transmission in March 2005. She has served in her current role since January 2007, following the spin-off. Wyrsch is vice chairman of the board of directors of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America. She serves on the board of directors for the Ruckelshaus Institute and the School for Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Wyoming, where she is a 2007 recipient of the University's Distinguished Alumni Award.

A FORTUNE 500 company, Spectra Energy Corp (NYSE: SE) is one of North America's premier natural gas infrastructure companies serving three key links in the natural gas value chain: gathering and processing, transmission and storage, and distribution. For close to a century, Spectra Energy and its predecessor companies have developed critically important pipelines and related infrastructure connecting natural gas supply sources to premium markets. Based in Houston, Texas, the company operates in the United States and Canada approximately 18,000 miles of transmission pipeline, 265 billion cubic feet of storage, natural gas gathering and processing, natural gas liquids operations and local distribution assets. Spectra Energy Corp also has a 50-percent ownership in DCP Midstream, one of the largest natural gas gatherers and processors in the United States. Visit www.spectraenergy.com for more information.

SOURCE Spectra Energy