TXU Corp. announced several sudden executive changes on Monday, including the resignation of the chief financial officer and the creation of new power-generation executive spots.

The company said the changes mark a shift toward growth now that TXU has mostly finished cleaning up its balance sheet and cutting costs to become profitable.

"My specific responsibilities are really to initiate and execute on the growth strategy of the company, which is growth of the generation portfolio," said Michael Childers, who was named chief executive of generation development.

David Campbell, executive vice president of corporate planning, strategy and risk, will be interim chief financial officer until a replacement is found.

"Now is a good time for me to leave the company to pursue other restructuring situations and my interests in private equity opportunities," Mr. Oliver, the former financial chief, said in a statement.

Meanwhile, TXU's description of the role of Mr. Childers, the new head of generation development, states: "His goal is to help create shareholder value through a transaction and value-oriented culture that exhibits all the entrepreneurial spirit, discipline and capabilities of today's finest private equity firms."

Mr. Childers, along with a yet-to-be-named chief executive of generation construction, will develop new power plants, then hand them off to TXU Power to operate.

In an interview Monday, Mr. Childers said TXU's goal remains to double its coal generation capacity by 2010, either by building new facilities or buying some, either in or outside of Texas.

Mr. Childers has a team of around 60 employees, but the group is fluid depending on the projects he's working on. Currently, he's developing the two coal facilities in Texas that TXU has announced.

"The prices for coal-fired generation have increased rapidly during the past year," Mr. Childers said. That "focuses us on a different part of the market, on the new-build."

Mr. Childers declined to say where he might build more coal plants. He said he keeps a few things in mind when he scouts sites: How open and free is the market for power? And is the site close to multiple coal transportation lines?

This text is invisible on the page, but this text is affected by the invisible item's flow. This text is invisible on the page, but this text is affected by the invisible item's flow. More headlines...

This is cache, read story here