Benj leads Ørsted’s UK team responsible for business growth, setting and delivering our sustainability and environmental agendas, and managing the company’s relationships across government, authorities and NGOs. He was previously UK Country Manager, and set up and led the company’s Asset Management function.
Until November 2020 Benj co-chaired the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC) alongside the UK Government’s Energy Minister, and led the work to agree a programme of activities and commitments between industry and government through the Offshore Wind Sector Deal to support the continued growth of the sector. He has also served as Chair of the Board of G+, providing Health and Safety leadership for the offshore wind sector, and served on the government-appointed Advisory Panel on Highly Protected Marine Areas. He continues to work with OWIC, chairing the Pathways to Growth programme to address the barriers to the offshore wind sector achieving its full potential.
Benj joined Ørsted from the Carbon Trust where, as Director of Innovation, he led the company’s multi-million pound technology innovation programme across a wide range of novel low carbon technologies for both power generation and energy efficiency.
Before moving into the low carbon sector, Benj worked in the upstream oil and gas industry, most recently at Hess Corporation, a Fortune 100 Oil and Gas company, where he led the company’s European production business. He is a Fellow of the Geological Society and an Honorary Fellow of the Energy Institute.