John is a founder of Helius. He was its Chief Executive Officer until 2009 and then a non-executive director until July 2011 when he became Chairman. He holds a MBA and has over 15 years’ experience within renewable energy and sustainable systems having worked for several of the UK’s largest renewable energy companies. John has advised government and local authorities on the formulation of policy for the promotion and implementation of the UK’s renewable energy industry. John was until 2010 a member of the UK Government’s Renewables Advisory Board, which provided advice to the UK Government on a wide range of renewable energy issues.
Adrian is a Chartered Energy Engineer and holds a PhD in fluid mechanics. He specialises in renewable energy and sustainable energy project development and implementation. He was involved in research aimed at improving the efficiency of nuclear reactor boiler tube bundles for Electricity de France and the Central Electricity Generating Board. Adrian also successfully managed the development process for the portfolio of power purchase agreements for an independent biofuels company, which included developing a subsidiary company aimed at exploiting the growing requirement for energy crops and land remediation. Since 2004, he has been a principal consultant to SgurrEnergy Ltd assisting on biomass, liquid transport fuels, hydrogen and waste to energy projects. He has considerable experience in corporate and project finance, contracting and contract negotiation in a difficult market place. He is a member of the Energy Institute and contributes to this forum.
Alan has more than 19 years of experience within the energy sector. He began his accounting career with GEC in 1989 and has since held various positions in ABB Alstom, Alstom and most recently Siemens. During this time Alan has worked within businesses that design, manufacture, install and service rotating equipment within the power generation, and oil and gas markets. He has gained considerable experience of capital equipment sale, turnkey project management, financial systems implementation, and also overseas business start ups.
Chris holds a BSc in physics, a MSc in engineering ceramics and a MBA. With experience covering engineering materials, commodity chemicals, cables and the public sector he has delivered major change programmes in T&N and ICI and established a new joint venture with Hitachi Cable for BICC. Chris acted as head of inward investment in setting up Renaissance South Yorkshire a regeneration delivery body in South Yorkshire.
William J. Ingram Hill MA, Solicitor, Chief Operating Officer & Company SecretaryWilliam trained as a solicitor with city law firm Allen & Overy, qualifying into the firm's corporate energy and utilities team in 2002, and has since advised on an extensive range of transactions in the energy and other sectors. In 2007 he moved to Bristol firm Burges Salmon LLP, from which he joined Helius Energy plc as General Counsel in February 2009. He was appointed Company Secretary of Helius in August 2009 and promoted to COO in November of 2011.
A former top civil servant with experience of working in the private sector in investment banking and advisory services, Willy Rickett held the positions of Director General, Energy, Department of Energy & Climate Change and Chairman of the Governing Board of the International Energy Agency until his retirement in September 2009. He has fifteen years of board level experience across five UK Government departments focusing on energy and transport.
Mr Rickett is currently a non-executive director of Eggborough Power Ltd, the National Renewable Energy Centre Ltd, Impax Environmental Markets plc and Cambridge Economic Policy Associates Ltd. He is an adviser to Which? on energy issues and a member of the Advisory Board of the Electricity Policy Research Group at Cambridge University.
Mr MacDonald has extensive experience of investing in the forestry industry and in 2007 founded and is chairman of Specialist Waste Recycling Limited, which is an integrated waste management company with an innovative approach to collection and recycling. Prior to this he was Chief Executive Officer of eFinancial Group for 11 years, which was sold to Dow Jones and Dice Inc for £79m in 2007.
In addition to the above, Mr Macdonald was a director of Noble Group Limited until 2007, was a director of Glenshian Limited until 2006 and is a director of Roshven Restorations Limited.
A Chartered Accountant and business graduate by training, Mr Salvesen has been a leading figure in the UK seafood industry for around 30 years, having been Managing Director and now Chairman of Dawnfresh Seafoods Limited. He is also currently the Chairman of Dovecot Studios Ltd and of Dawnfresh Farming Limited and is a director of Praha Investment Holdings Ltd and Archangel Informal Investment, Scotland's largest angel investor syndicate.
He is Deputy Chairman of the Fettes Trust and is a past President of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society and of the British Frozen Food Federation.