RONNIE BONNAR
CHAIR
Having started his career in oil and gas, Ronnie brings a wealth of experience of delivering growth and development within the offshore renewable energy sector.
In 2005 he took on the role as Project Manager on the Beatrice Demonstrator Project and subsequently, in 2008, became co-founder and Operations Director of SeaEnergy Renewables Ltd. He then took up the role of General Manager for Repsol Nuevas Energias UK, managing all their renewables activities in the country. In 2016, he set up his own consultancy business focussed on the renewables sector in the UK and abroad, and joined the board of ORE Catapult in 2018, becoming Chair three years later. Ronnie is also a former Chair of Scottish Renewables.
PROFESSOR DAME ANNE GLOVER CBE FRSE
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Anne has a BSc in Biochemistry from Edinburgh and a PhD in Molecular Microbiology from Cambridge. In 2008, she was made a Woman of Outstanding Achievement in Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) and has worked hard to raise the profile of women in SET roles.
Anne was the first Chief Scientific Adviser to the President of the European Commission, and the first Chief Scientific Adviser for Scotland. In both positions Anne transformed the way science, engineering, and technology were used and discussed within government and developed strategic initiatives to bridge the gap between science and policy. In addition to being awarded a CBE, she was made Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for services to Science in the UK and Europe in the 2015 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
HUUB DEN ROOIJEN
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Huub has over 30 years of experience in the energy sector, predominantly working with Shell where he started as a research geophysicist. He was a co-founder of Shell’s wind energy business, delivering and managing its first offshore windfarms in the UK and the Netherlands.
He is also the former Managing Director of Marine at The Crown Estate, a statutory body that manages the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and is responsible for its sustainable development including for cables, pipelines, aggregates, carbon storage, and offshore renewable energy. He retired from The Crown Estate in October 2022 and now acts as an independent marine advisor.
ALEX SMITH
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Alex is currently Finance Director of Dickson Minto WS, a boutique law firm specialising in corporate matters. She qualified as a Chartered Accountant and worked in a variety of roles within PriceWaterhouseCoopers, including assurance, listing, and transaction services serving a wide range of industry sectors, before becoming Group Financial Controller, Risk & Insurance Manager for Forth Ports.
Prior to joining Forth Ports, she was seconded to the Scottish Government’s Energy Directorate to support the team which created the Renewable Energy Investment Fund. Outside of work, Alex is an active member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland Business Policy Panel and is a non-executive director and trustee for the Rock Trust, a Scottish youth homelessness prevention charity.
JAMES GARDINER
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
James Gardiner has worked for many years in business banking. That has included as Head of External Affairs for RBS/Nat West interacting with government, the Bank of England, British Business Bank and UK Finance, and sitting on various external Boards related to SME Banking.
James as also served as Strategic Advisor to Scottish Government during the design and build phase of Scottish National Investment Bank and as the Chief Investment Officer for Innovate UK. James has several years’ experience as a Non-Exec Director and since 2012 has been the Deputy-chair of RBS Social & Community Capital’s Investment Committee providing lending solutions to charities and not-for-profit organisations creating social impact. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Banker Institute and holds an MBA.
BENJ SYKES
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Benj leads Ørsted’s UK team responsible for business growth, setting and delivering their sustainability and environmental agendas, and managing the company’s relationships across government, authorities and NGOs. 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.
Benj previously 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 is a Fellow of the Geological Society and an Honorary Fellow of the Energy Institute.
JANE STEWART
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Jane Stewart is an independent director and Chartered Accountant with over 25 years’ Board level experience across industry, private equity investment and corporate finance. She is a Non-Executive Director / Chair with a portfolio of interests from private company Boards at varying stages of growth (environmental and technology sectors) to the Circular Economy Investment Fund.
A Women’s Enterprise Scotland Ambassador, Jane has been recognised by Innovate UK in the National Women in Innovation Awards 2022 as one of the UK’s leading female entrepreneurs and was Highly Commended Scottish Businesswoman of the Year 2017.
MAIDA ZAHIROVIC
NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Maida Zahirovic has been Head of Renewables in the energy division of James Fisher & Sons Group since 2022, having previously led the Group’s APAC renewables region.
Prior to joining James Fisher, she worked for both Vestas (formerly MHI Vestas Offshore) and Siemens Wind Power in a variety of senior international roles, most recently she led the offshore wind market entry into Taiwan for Vestas (formerly MHI Vestas Offshore) through local content collaboration with the local and global supply chain, considering customer and government requirements and ensuring sustainable long-term value add. Resident in Denmark, she is fluent in Danish, Bosnian, Croatian and English, and has an MSc in Strategy & Organisation and a BEng in Global Management & Manufacturing Engineering from the University of Southern Denmark.
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