Alejandra Arbelaez Sierra
Senior Vice President Global Commercial Services, Schneider electric
Alejandra Arbelaez Sierra is the Senior Vice President Global Service Commercial. Alejandra leads the regional service team to drive business growth and deliver world-class service at the highest standard of safety. Alejandra brings more than 16 years of experience in executing renewable generation projects and managing large, multi-disciplinary international organizations across Europe, Latin America, and Asia. In her various management positions at Vestas, Centrica and Mainstream, she has developed highly effective strategies for driving increased safety, financial and operational performance and creating new revenue streams. She is experienced in strategy development and execution, operational improvement, and organization set-up. Alejandra holds an MBA from Imperial College in London, a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a post graduate degree in Operations and Maintenance Management from Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers in France.
Amanda Niklaus
Head of Renewables PPA Origination, BKW AG
Anna Richert
Head of O&M Development Department, Energix Polska
Joan Bondareff
Of Counsel, Blank Rome LLP
Joan Bondareff focuses her practice on marine transportation, environmental, regulatory, renewable energy, and legislative issues. Joan represents clients in many industries and state and local governments in matters related to: Maritime regulations and public policy, Environmental law, Government relations, Renewable energy, Federal grants, and Maritime security for shipyards and ports. Before joining Blank Rome, Joan was chief counsel and acting deputy administrator of the Maritime Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. She was also former majority counsel for the House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries. Joan served on the Obama Transition Team for the Department of Transportation handling maritime related issues. She worked on the OPA 90 legislation, and also helped develop the Natural Resource Damage Assessment regulations when she was the assistant general counsel for Ocean Services at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Judit Szasz
Senior Project Manager in Offshore, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy
Judit has extensive experience in Project Management as Project Manager, Senior Project Manager and Department Head. She – together with her dedicated team of individual contributors and managers – led complex telecom and renewables projects across the globe, mainly in Europe, Africa and Asia. She has dedicated the recent 14 years of her professional career to the wind industry with Siemens / Siemens Gamesa. Currently she is a Senior Project Manager in Offshore. Judit is based in Vejle, Denmark, after relocating from Shanghai in 2020. Judit is a Mechanical Engineer with an Edinburgh Business School MBA and a complementary diploma in Foreign Trade.
Karen Conover
Vice President of DNV GL Energy
Karen Conover is a Vice President of DNV GL Energy, a global risk management company with multiple renewable energy advisory and certification offices in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. She is the founder and former CEO of Global Energy Concepts (GEC), a leading consulting engineering company that specialized in the analysis, design, evaluation, testing, and management of wind energy systems and projects, prior to its acquisition by DNV in 2008. Karen has been working in the renewable energy industry for more than 30 years and she has been a member of the AWEA Board of Directors since 1997. She is a Past President of the AWEA Board, has served as Chair of WINDPOWER, and on the Nominations, Membership and Awards Committees. In 2010, she was recognized as the Industry Woman of the Year by Women of Wind Energy and in 2012, she received the Britt Theismann Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Wind Industry from AWEA. Beyond DNV GL, Karen is also a member of the board and co-founder of the parent committee at The Valley School, on the environmental grant committee of Social Venture Partners, and engaged in a number of local and national energy and environmental organizations.
Kate Freeman
Senior Development Analyst, Corio Generation
Kate is a Management Consultant at BVG Associates, where she primarily focuses on energy modelling and analysis. Kate joined BVG Associates in February 2015 after completing her PhD with Plymouth University. Her doctoral thesis involved developing a system model of a wave energy converter and optimising its turbine speed for maximum energy output. Prior to her doctorate, she graduated from the University of Oxford with an MPhys.
Katherine Phillips
Managing Director, OWC
Katherine is the Managing Director of OWC. In this role she is responsible for all aspects of the global performance of OWC – including staff around the world in Europe, Asia and the Americas. Katherine completed an MEng in Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Cambridge before starting her career in offshore structural design and analysis. Her drive to be a bigger part of the energy transition led her to OWC in 2018 where she has been heavily involved in the development of fixed and floating offshore wind projects.
Kendra Rauschenberger
General Partner Siemens Energy Ventures
Katherine is the Managing Director of OWC. In this role she is responsible for all aspects of the global performance of OWC – including staff around the world in Europe, Asia and the Americas. Katherine completed an MEng in Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Cambridge before starting her career in offshore structural design and analysis. Her drive to be a bigger part of the energy transition led her to OWC in 2018 where she has been heavily involved in the development of fixed and floating offshore wind projects.
Laura James
Senior Human Resources Manager, Globeleq South Africa Management Services
Laura oversees all people-related matters at Globeleq South Africa, including developing HR and organisation development strategy and overseeing implementation. She also plays a leading role in group-wide people management and development projects which involve all Globeleq’s operating countries. She has been with the business since the early days and is delighted at having witnessed the company and its people mature and grow.
Lena Noelck
Vice President Service, Vestas Latin America
Senior Leader of German nationality with over 10 years of international experience in the wind industry, collaborating with developers, suppliers, analysts and industry experts. Worked on 4 continents with several years of leadership experience of multinational cross-functional teams. After multiple years of working in the Procurement & Supply Chain space with a focus on analytics and value chain optimization, moved on to roles in Business Transformation, Market Intelligence and Strategy. Most recently took on the lead of the Strategy department in Latin America.
Lucy Craig
Director, Growth, Innovation and Digital, DNV
Maria Fernanda Locarnini
Commercial Director, South Cone, GE Grid Solutions, GE
Maria Fernanda Locarnini is Commercial Director at GE Renewable Energy, Grid Solutions for Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay at GE Grid Solutions. She previously worked at GE as Director of Business Development and as General Manager of GE Lighting for the Southern Cone and Andean region. Before joining GE, she was a Managing Director at SWARCO AG, and an independent consultant for the electricity and renewable energy markets. She began her career at ABB where she worked for 22 years and had international assignments in Venezuela, Brazil and Italy. Fernanda was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is an Electronic Engineer from the National Technological University, she has a specialization in Systems Engineering from the University of Buenos Aires and has already participated in management programs at IAE, Argentina and at Duke University in the USA.
Mary Thorogood
Government Relations, External Affairs and Communications Director
Mary joined the Net Zero Technology Centre from Vestas, the world leading wind turbine manufacturer, where she led Public Affairs for Northern & Central Europe. Mary has spent over 10 years in the wind industry, previously at the Swedish utility Vattenfall, building support in governments and society for sustainable, long term growth in wind and renewables to drive the journey to Net Zero. She holds a number of Board positions, including at Renewable UK and the Aldersgate Group, and participates in a number of initiatives such as Women in Wind, to support the long term strategic direction of the industry.
Nailia Dindarova
Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs, BlueFloat Energy
As Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs, Nailia Dindarova is responsible for analyzing policy matters, new and existing laws, and regulation in various markets with regards to offshore wind. Additionally, she supports BlueFloat Energy’s local development teams with regulatory affairs efforts and coordinates permitting process across different markets. Prior to joining BlueFloat Energy, Nailia served as Public Affairs Lead at Principle Power with the responsibility for overseeing the company’s global public affairs, marketing and communications. Before that, she was the Senior Project Manager of the WindFloat Atlantic Project at EDP Renewables (EDPR) in Madrid where she successfully managed the due diligence of the project and played an instrumental role in securing the approval of investment by EDP Group. She also led all activities related to the insurance strategy for the project and carried out an in-depth risk analysis of the project. While at EDPR, Nailia was also responsible for setting up and managing the company’s corporate university. Nailia has more than 20 years of experience in areas pertaining to climate change, sustainable transportation, innovation, renewable energy and other low-carbon energy technologies and has extensive knowledge in policy, business development and project management. Nailia started her professional career in Brussels, where she worked for a number of organizations on EU policy and regulation. Nailia holds a Master of European Economic Studies from the College of Europe and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Washington University in the USA.
Nathalie Oosterlinck
Head, Global Offshore Wind, JERA
Nathalie Oosterlinck is a 20-year veteran of the renewable energy sector and Head, Global Offshore Wind at Japan’s biggest power generator, JERA. Prior to joining JERA, Nathalie was head of special projects at DEME, Belgium’s offshore marine engineering company, focusing on offshore renewables, hydrogen and innovation. Prior to DEME, she had worked as chief executive of Otary, a partnership of eight Belgian companies active in renewable energy, and had been involved in the set-up, management and development of offshore wind concessions.
Sarah Barber
Programme Leader Wind Energy at OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences
Sarah currently leads the Wind Energy Research Programme at the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, where she is responsible for projects on machine learning, high-fidelity wind modelling, smart measurement systems and biomaterials for rotor blades, amongst others. She is also president of The Swiss Wind Energy R&D Network, which bundles wind energy R&D capabilities in Switzerland. She has been active in the research and development of wind turbines in Switzerland and Germany for more than 14 years, including as a researcher at ETH Zurich, a wind energy expert at BKW Energie AG, CTO at Agile Wind Power AG and Group Manager of the Center for Load Measurements at Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy. She holds a M.Eng. degree in Aerospace Engineering from Cambridge University (UK) and MIT (USA) as well as a PhD in Aerodynamics from the University of Sheffield (UK). Sarah has participated actively in a range of other mentoring programmes, including SwissTec Ladies (Switzerland), FeelScience (University of Stuttgart) and TALENTA (Fraunhofer). She is also a qualified Business Coach (Trigon) and runs leadership workshops for engineers. Recently she founded a new Diversity Committee at the European Academy of Wind Energy.
Sigra Sharma
Regional Head Process Improvement – Continental Europe & the UK, Schlumberger
Sigra is a leader in the energy sector with an experience of over 16 years. She started her career in operations in Schlumberger and since then has worn various hats in line management and function management roles across Europe, Middle East and Asia. Through her expertise in Operations Management, HSSE-Q, Sustainability and Crisis Management; Sigra has ensured successful delivery of services and products to the clients over the years. She also has cross-functional experience in Project Management (certified PMP), Change Management and Learning & Development. In her current role Sigra is leading the supply chain & infrastructure sustainability programs for Europe & the UK; including decarbonization of supply chain, community engagements & implementation of flexible work framework for people returning to the workplace. She was instrumental in ensuring business continuity and implementing HSSE-Q programs across Europe & the UK as Regional Head for Operations Integrity during the COVID-19 pandemic; and prior to that in South Asia as Regional Head for HSSE. She has been a speaker and panelist at various industry forums such as OEUK, SPE, IADC, IDEC and Global HSE Conference. Sigra holds B.Tech. from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. She is a mentor at GWNET (Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition) and founding member at WIES (Women in Energy Sector) conference.
Tania Moreira
APAC Head of Engineering, RWE
20+ years of professional experience focusing on developing markets and new technologies. Tania Moreira has lead engineering teams through several challenging major projects in South America, Europe and Asia Pacific. She is fully engaged with the Renewables sector to boost clean energy innovation to reach COP targets and contribute to RWE strategy of reaching NZE by 2040. In her current role, she is supporting on building the engineering team in Asia Pacific for RWE Renewables, focusing on attracting and training local talents, and increase RWE’s project portfolio in the region. Previous she has held roles with Copenhagen Offshore Partners as Technical Director for the CFXD and Zhong Neng Offshore Wind Farms and with DNV as District Manager on building their Renewables business in Asia. In general, she has worked in more than 20 renewables projects globally and mentored many peers along the way.
Tine Boon
Head of Renewables, Tractebel (Belgium)
As head of Offshore, Tine is responsible for all offshore energy activities within Tractebel’s Global Power. Focusing on the energy transition in the offshore world, Tractebel does not only contribute to the successful initiation and completion of all kinds of offshore wind farms and associated infrastructures, but also pave the way for new technologies to enter like offshore H2 production, offshore solar PV deployment, and energy storage. She holds a Master of Engineering (M.Eng) from KU Leuven.
Toni Beukes
Non Executive Director, South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (SARETEC)
Toni has 12 years’ experience in the energy sector across oil, gas and renewable energy (specifically wind). She’s predominantly held roles in legal, governance, compliance, leadership and consulting. Her wind energy experience stems from her work in the South African renewable energy private sector working for a number of OEMs. Toni is currently the Renewable Energy Sales Leader for Southern Africa in onshore wind at GE Renewable Energy and a member of the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA). Toni holds a B.Juris and LL.B degrees, and MBA and LL.M degrees (with Distinction) from the University of Dundee in Scotland. Toni is a qualified Conveyancer and governance professional, accredited as a Certified Director of the Institute of Directors of South Africa.
Alejandra Arbelaez Sierra
VICE PRESIDENT OF SERVICE AT VESTAS LATAM
Alejandra Arbelaez Sierra is the Senior Vice President Global Service Commercial. Alejandra leads the regional service team to drive business growth and deliver world-class service at the highest standard of safety. Alejandra brings more than 16 years of experience in executing renewable generation projects and managing large, multi-disciplinary international organizations across Europe, Latin America, and Asia. In her various management positions at Vestas, Centrica and Mainstream, she has developed highly effective strategies for driving increased safety, financial and operational performance and creating new revenue streams. She is experienced in strategy development and execution, operational improvement, and organization set-up. Alejandra holds an MBA from Imperial College in London, a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a post graduate degree in Operations and Maintenance Management from Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers in France.
Anna Richert
Head of O&M Development Department, Energix Polska
Joan Bondareff
Of Counsel, Blank Rome LLP
Joan Bondareff focuses her practice on marine transportation, environmental, regulatory, renewable energy, and legislative issues. Joan represents clients in many industries and state and local governments in matters related to: Maritime regulations and public policy, Environmental law, Government relations, Renewable energy, Federal grants, and Maritime security for shipyards and ports. Before joining Blank Rome, Joan was chief counsel and acting deputy administrator of the Maritime Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation. She was also former majority counsel for the House Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries. Joan served on the Obama Transition Team for the Department of Transportation handling maritime related issues. She worked on the OPA 90 legislation, and also helped develop the Natural Resource Damage Assessment regulations when she was the assistant general counsel for Ocean Services at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Judit Szasz
Senior Project Manager in Offshore, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy
Judit has extensive experience in Project Management as Project Manager, Senior Project Manager and Department Head. She – together with her dedicated team of individual contributors and managers – led complex telecom and renewables projects across the globe, mainly in Europe, Africa and Asia. She has dedicated the recent 14 years of her professional career to the wind industry with Siemens / Siemens Gamesa. Currently she is a Senior Project Manager in Offshore. Judit is based in Vejle, Denmark, after relocating from Shanghai in 2020. Judit is a Mechanical Engineer with an Edinburgh Business School MBA and a complementary diploma in Foreign Trade.
Karen Conover
Vice President of DNV GL Energy
Karen Conover is a Vice President of DNV GL Energy, a global risk management company with multiple renewable energy advisory and certification offices in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. She is the founder and former CEO of Global Energy Concepts (GEC), a leading consulting engineering company that specialized in the analysis, design, evaluation, testing, and management of wind energy systems and projects, prior to its acquisition by DNV in 2008. Karen has been working in the renewable energy industry for more than 30 years and she has been a member of the AWEA Board of Directors since 1997. She is a Past President of the AWEA Board, has served as Chair of WINDPOWER, and on the Nominations, Membership and Awards Committees. In 2010, she was recognized as the Industry Woman of the Year by Women of Wind Energy and in 2012, she received the Britt Theismann Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Wind Industry from AWEA. Beyond DNV GL, Karen is also a member of the board and co-founder of the parent committee at The Valley School, on the environmental grant committee of Social Venture Partners, and engaged in a number of local and national energy and environmental organizations.
Kate Freeman
MANAGING CONSULTANT, BVG ASSOCIATES
Kate is a Management Consultant at BVG Associates, where she primarily focuses on energy modelling and analysis. Kate joined BVG Associates in February 2015 after completing her PhD with Plymouth University. Her doctoral thesis involved developing a system model of a wave energy converter and optimising its turbine speed for maximum energy output. Prior to her doctorate, she graduated from the University of Oxford with an MPhys.
Katherine Phillips
Managing Director, OWC
Katherine is the Managing Director of OWC. In this role she is responsible for all aspects of the global performance of OWC – including staff around the world in Europe, Asia and the Americas. Katherine completed an MEng in Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Cambridge before starting her career in offshore structural design and analysis. Her drive to be a bigger part of the energy transition led her to OWC in 2018 where she has been heavily involved in the development of fixed and floating offshore wind projects.
Kendra Rauschenberger
General Partner Siemens Energy Ventures
Katherine is the Managing Director of OWC. In this role she is responsible for all aspects of the global performance of OWC – including staff around the world in Europe, Asia and the Americas. Katherine completed an MEng in Civil and Structural Engineering at the University of Cambridge before starting her career in offshore structural design and analysis. Her drive to be a bigger part of the energy transition led her to OWC in 2018 where she has been heavily involved in the development of fixed and floating offshore wind projects.
Laura James
Senior Human Resources Manager, Globeleq South Africa Management Services
Laura oversees all people-related matters at Globeleq South Africa, including developing HR and organisation development strategy and overseeing implementation. She also plays a leading role in group-wide people management and development projects which involve all Globeleq’s operating countries. She has been with the business since the early days and is delighted at having witnessed the company and its people mature and grow.
Lena Noelck
Sr. Director – Head of Strategy & MarCom, Vestas Latin America
Senior Leader of German nationality with over 10 years of international experience in the wind industry, collaborating with developers, suppliers, analysts and industry experts. Worked on 4 continents with several years of leadership experience of multinational cross-functional teams. After multiple years of working in the Procurement & Supply Chain space with a focus on analytics and value chain optimization, moved on to roles in Business Transformation, Market Intelligence and Strategy. Most recently took on the lead of the Strategy department in Latin America.
Lucy Craig
Director, Growth, Innovation and Digital, DNV
Maria Fernanda Locarnini
Commercial Director, South Cone, GE Grid Solutions, GE
Maria Fernanda Locarnini is Commercial Director at GE Renewable Energy, Grid Solutions for Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay at GE Grid Solutions. She previously worked at GE as Director of Business Development and as General Manager of GE Lighting for the Southern Cone and Andean region. Before joining GE, she was a Managing Director at SWARCO AG, and an independent consultant for the electricity and renewable energy markets. She began her career at ABB where she worked for 22 years and had international assignments in Venezuela, Brazil and Italy. Fernanda was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is an Electronic Engineer from the National Technological University, she has a specialization in Systems Engineering from the University of Buenos Aires and has already participated in management programs at IAE, Argentina and at Duke University in the USA.
Mary Thorogood
Government Relations, External Affairs and Communications Director
Mary joined the Net Zero Technology Centre from Vestas, the world leading wind turbine manufacturer, where she led Public Affairs for Northern & Central Europe. Mary has spent over 10 years in the wind industry, previously at the Swedish utility Vattenfall, building support in governments and society for sustainable, long term growth in wind and renewables to drive the journey to Net Zero. She holds a number of Board positions, including at Renewable UK and the Aldersgate Group, and participates in a number of initiatives such as Women in Wind, to support the long term strategic direction of the industry.
Nailia Dindarova
Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs, BlueFloat Energy
As Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs, Nailia Dindarova is responsible for analyzing policy matters, new and existing laws, and regulation in various markets with regards to offshore wind. Additionally, she supports BlueFloat Energy’s local development teams with regulatory affairs efforts and coordinates permitting process across different markets. Prior to joining BlueFloat Energy, Nailia served as Public Affairs Lead at Principle Power with the responsibility for overseeing the company’s global public affairs, marketing and communications. Before that, she was the Senior Project Manager of the WindFloat Atlantic Project at EDP Renewables (EDPR) in Madrid where she successfully managed the due diligence of the project and played an instrumental role in securing the approval of investment by EDP Group. She also led all activities related to the insurance strategy for the project and carried out an in-depth risk analysis of the project. While at EDPR, Nailia was also responsible for setting up and managing the company’s corporate university. Nailia has more than 20 years of experience in areas pertaining to climate change, sustainable transportation, innovation, renewable energy and other low-carbon energy technologies and has extensive knowledge in policy, business development and project management. Nailia started her professional career in Brussels, where she worked for a number of organizations on EU policy and regulation. Nailia holds a Master of European Economic Studies from the College of Europe and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Washington University in the USA.
Nathalie Oosterlinck
Head, Global Offshore Wind, JERA
Nathalie Oosterlinck is a 20-year veteran of the renewable energy sector and Head, Global Offshore Wind at Japan’s biggest power generator, JERA. Prior to joining JERA, Nathalie was head of special projects at DEME, Belgium’s offshore marine engineering company, focusing on offshore renewables, hydrogen and innovation. Prior to DEME, she had worked as chief executive of Otary, a partnership of eight Belgian companies active in renewable energy, and had been involved in the set-up, management and development of offshore wind concessions.
Sarah Barber
Programme Leader Wind Energy at OST – Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences
Sarah currently leads the Wind Energy Research Programme at the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, where she is responsible for projects on machine learning, high-fidelity wind modelling, smart measurement systems and biomaterials for rotor blades, amongst others. She is also president of The Swiss Wind Energy R&D Network, which bundles wind energy R&D capabilities in Switzerland. She has been active in the research and development of wind turbines in Switzerland and Germany for more than 14 years, including as a researcher at ETH Zurich, a wind energy expert at BKW Energie AG, CTO at Agile Wind Power AG and Group Manager of the Center for Load Measurements at Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy. She holds a M.Eng. degree in Aerospace Engineering from Cambridge University (UK) and MIT (USA) as well as a PhD in Aerodynamics from the University of Sheffield (UK). Sarah has participated actively in a range of other mentoring programmes, including SwissTec Ladies (Switzerland), FeelScience (University of Stuttgart) and TALENTA (Fraunhofer). She is also a qualified Business Coach (Trigon) and runs leadership workshops for engineers. Recently she founded a new Diversity Committee at the European Academy of Wind Energy.
Sigra Sharma
Regional Head Process Improvement – Continental Europe & the UK, Schlumberger
Sigra is a leader in the energy sector with an experience of over 16 years. She started her career in operations in Schlumberger and since then has worn various hats in line management and function management roles across Europe, Middle East and Asia. Through her expertise in Operations Management, HSSE-Q, Sustainability and Crisis Management; Sigra has ensured successful delivery of services and products to the clients over the years. She also has cross-functional experience in Project Management (certified PMP), Change Management and Learning & Development. In her current role Sigra is leading the supply chain & infrastructure sustainability programs for Europe & the UK; including decarbonization of supply chain, community engagements & implementation of flexible work framework for people returning to the workplace. She was instrumental in ensuring business continuity and implementing HSSE-Q programs across Europe & the UK as Regional Head for Operations Integrity during the COVID-19 pandemic; and prior to that in South Asia as Regional Head for HSSE. She has been a speaker and panelist at various industry forums such as OEUK, SPE, IADC, IDEC and Global HSE Conference. Sigra holds B.Tech. from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. She is a mentor at GWNET (Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition) and founding member at WIES (Women in Energy Sector) conference.
Tania Moreira
APAC Head of Engineering, RWE
20+ years of professional experience focusing on developing markets and new technologies. Tania Moreira has lead engineering teams through several challenging major projects in South America, Europe and Asia Pacific. She is fully engaged with the Renewables sector to boost clean energy innovation to reach COP targets and contribute to RWE strategy of reaching NZE by 2040. In her current role, she is supporting on building the engineering team in Asia Pacific for RWE Renewables, focusing on attracting and training local talents, and increase RWE’s project portfolio in the region. Previous she has held roles with Copenhagen Offshore Partners as Technical Director for the CFXD and Zhong Neng Offshore Wind Farms and with DNV as District Manager on building their Renewables business in Asia. In general, she has worked in more than 20 renewables projects globally and mentored many peers along the way.
Tine Boon
Head of Renewables, Tractebel (Belgium)
As head of Offshore, Tine is responsible for all offshore energy activities within Tractebel’s Global Power. Focusing on the energy transition in the offshore world, Tractebel does not only contribute to the successful initiation and completion of all kinds of offshore wind farms and associated infrastructures, but also pave the way for new technologies to enter like offshore H2 production, offshore solar PV deployment, and energy storage. She holds a Master of Engineering (M.Eng) from KU Leuven.
Toni Beukes
Non Executive Director, South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (SARETEC)
Toni has 12 years’ experience in the energy sector across oil, gas and renewable energy (specifically wind). She’s predominantly held roles in legal, governance, compliance, leadership and consulting. Her wind energy experience stems from her work in the South African renewable energy private sector working for a number of OEMs. Toni is currently the Renewable Energy Sales Leader for Southern Africa in onshore wind at GE Renewable Energy and a member of the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA). Toni holds a B.Juris and LL.B degrees, and MBA and LL.M degrees (with Distinction) from the University of Dundee in Scotland. Toni is a qualified Conveyancer and governance professional, accredited as a Certified Director of the Institute of Directors of South Africa.
Alejandra Arbelaez Sierra
VICE PRESIDENT OF SERVICE AT VESTAS LATAM
Alejandra Arbelaez Sierra is the Senior Vice President Global Service Commercial. Alejandra leads the regional service team to drive business growth and deliver world-class service at the highest standard of safety. Alejandra brings more than 16 years of experience in executing renewable generation projects and managing large, multi-disciplinary international organizations across Europe, Latin America, and Asia. In her various management positions at Vestas, Centrica and Mainstream, she has developed highly effective strategies for driving increased safety, financial and operational performance and creating new revenue streams. She is experienced in strategy development and execution, operational improvement, and organization set-up. Alejandra holds an MBA from Imperial College in London, a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and a post graduate degree in Operations and Maintenance Management from Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers in France.
Amisha Patel
Public Affairs Lead, Principle Power
Amisha heads public affairs, stakeholder engagement and communications for Principle Power. She is also a board member of Offshore Wind California. Amisha has worked in the energy sector for over 15 years having built and led the global power and renewables team at the Energy Industries Council where she directed government relations, global supply chain engagement, and energy export campaigns for offshore wind, energy from waste, energy storage and nuclear new build and decommissioning. Having started her career with the UK’s civil service Amisha has extensive experience in shaping renewable energy policy. She has served previous roles with developers Statkraft leading communications in the UK and Ireland and ESB where she was a part of the Asset Development team scoping projects in the UK. Amisha has also worked with trade bodies EnergyUK where she led work on the Electricity Market Reform and MakeUK working with end users and high emitters on energy efficiency and carbon reduction. Amisha has an MSc in Environmental Policy and Regulation from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Ana Rodriguez Lizana
Head of Wind Turbines, Corporate Technical Team, Ocean Winds
Ana is the Head of Wind Turbines within the Corporate Technical team of Ocean Winds, focused on offshore wind projects. Ana joined OW recently in December 2020 from Iberdrola/Scottish Power Renewables, where she worked as Lead Contract Manager for EA HUB offshore project. Prior to that, she worked in the same company (SPR) as a Grid compliance manager and Lead electrical design manager for EA ONE offshore wind farm, with the objective of ensuring the compliance and the use of the best practice for the design and construction of the overall electrical system from the turbine connection up to the transmission system, and the grid connection with the TSO. During this time, she was actively involved in the energy regulation and market from a technical point of view. Ana has been living in Scotland, UK, since 2013, and she is now based in Madrid, Spain, with this new position. She has a Master Degree in energy engineering from Universidad Politecnica in Madrid, and a MSc Offshore renewables from Cranfield University, in England. She was nominated as the Top 50 Women in Engineering in 2017.
Aoife McMahon
Corporate Finance Manager, Mainstream Renewable Power
Aoife joined the Asia Pacific team in January 2020. Since joining Mainstream in 2013, Aoife has held senior positions in both the Corporate Finance team and previous to that, the Group Finance team. Her experience in the Corporate Finance team included closing over €300m in corporate debt arrangements, leading on the disposal of two wind farms, assisting in a grey market process and managing the company’s corporate debt and shareholder relationships. She also provided corporate support to local project finance teams. In her role in Group Finance, Aoife was responsible for preparing the Group’s Annual Report, preparing management reporting deliverables and heavily involved in the budget process. Formerly, Aoife spent four years working with PwC where she obtained her ACA qualification. Aoife holds a Bachelor of Commerce from University College Dublin (“UCD”) and a MBA from the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School.
Ilina Stefanova, MBA
Project Management, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
Ilina has recently joined UNIDO as Coordinator of energy efficiency projects in newly industrialized countries in Africa and Asia. Before that she worked at EVN AG as a public affairs manager and was responsible for stakeholder engagement and coordination for CEE (Central and Eastern Europe) and Western Balkans. Ilina has worked in the energy sector for over 15 years and has extensive experience in shaping renewable energy policy and just transition in less-developed parts of Europe. She led several large-scale international projects for application of new market models supporting the smooth transformation and decarbonisation of the energy sector. Ilina has Masters’ degree in Law and Energy Management MBA from Vienna University of Economics and Business. She is certified as professional project manager from PMI since 2020.
Isabel Rodriguez
Investment Director, Glennmont partners
Isabel has more than 10 years’ experience in renewable energy transactions in Europe and emerging markets. In this time she led the origination, investment and financing of solar and wind energy projects globally. Before joining Glennmont, Isabel worked in Envision energy, based in London, being responsible for the origination and structuring of third party financing for all their LaTAM investments; previous to Envision she worked in EDF ER in London managing renewable M&A activity for renewable energy project in the UK and in Acciona energy in Madrid where she was responsible for the project financing of the company’s international Investments. Isabel holds a MSc in structural and civil engineering, from the Universidad Alfonso X in Madrid and a Executive development programme from the IESE Business school.
Judit Szasz
Senior Project Manager in Offshore, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy
Judit has extensive experience in Project Management as Project Manager, Senior Project Manager and Department Head. She – together with her dedicated team of individual contributors and managers – led complex telecom and renewables projects across the globe, mainly in Europe, Africa and Asia. She has dedicated the recent 14 years of her professional career to the wind industry with Siemens / Siemens Gamesa. Currently she is a Senior Project Manager in Offshore. Judit is based in Vejle, Denmark, after relocating from Shanghai in 2020. Judit is a Mechanical Engineer with an Edinburgh Business School MBA and a complementary diploma in Foreign Trade.
Kendra Rauschenberger
Vice President, Siemens Energy Ventures and Incubator
Kendra Rauschenberger is the Vice President of Siemens Energy Ventures and Incubator. Based in Erlangen, Germany, Kendra leads the corporate incubation and venturing activities that are accelerating the development of technologies and business models to create sustainable, reliable and affordable energy systems. With over 20 years’ experience in the energy industry, Kendra has developed effective strategies to grow new business, implementing them through new and innovative business models to generate over 1.5bn EUR in new orders. Kendra is experienced in strategy, business development, sales and bidding – having held various leadership positions across Siemens Wind Power and Siemens AG. Some of her most notable achievements include bidding large scale wind farm O&M agreements and scaling up additive manufacturing services in a corporate context. Kendra is passionate about pioneering new ways of working and helping to transform company cultures and organizations. She has lived in Denmark and the UK and holds an MBA in New Venture Creation from the University of Louisville, Kentucky and a bachelor’s degree in commercial economics from Hoogeschool Zeeland in the Netherlands.
Leila Garcia
Senior Research Manager, Wind and Solar O&M, Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables
Lydia Natalia
APAC BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, WPD AG
Natascha Forster Jung
director, Bid Management & Sales Support Global Offshore Commercial, vestas
Natascha has more than 10 years’ experience in the offshore wind industry working for Vestas. Today she is leading the bid management and sales support team and with her dedicated team, ensuring high quality support to all global offshore sales activities. Previously Natascha has been involved in running cross-functional projects and with strategic customers defining long term strategies and ensuring close collaboration. She has recently completed executive education from INSEAD with the Leadership Transition Programme and Coaching Certificate.
Regina Ranieri
Project Manager, Green Hydrogen, FFI
Regina Ranieri is the project manager in LATAM from green hydrogen projects for FFI. She has 10 years experience into renewable energy sector in LATAM, her previous job was Business Development Manager for UL RENEWABLE in LATAM. Regina is Argentinian, and holds an Industrial Engineering degree (UTN) as well as a Master of Energy in CEARE – UBA. Regina is currently doing a Master in Finance. She has experience in manufacturing wind turbines and also in developing different renewable technologies. Regina is member of Global Energy Council. Actually Regina Ranieri is Director of an executive program in UCEMA, about development and financing of renewable energy and storage. She is also foundation member for AMES ARGENTINA, a civil organization for women in energy, looking for gender integration in infrastructure and suitability sector.
Sarah Barber
Programme Leader – Wind Energy, Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences
Sarah currently leads the Wind Energy Research Programme at the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, where she is responsible for projects on machine learning, high-fidelity wind modelling, smart measurement systems and biomaterials for rotor blades, amongst others. She is also president of The Swiss Wind Energy R&D Network, which bundles wind energy R&D capabilities in Switzerland. She has been active in the research and development of wind turbines in Switzerland and Germany for more than 14 years, including as a researcher at ETH Zurich, a wind energy expert at BKW Energie AG, CTO at Agile Wind Power AG and Group Manager of the Center for Load Measurements at Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy. She holds a M.Eng. degree in Aerospace Engineering from Cambridge University (UK) and MIT (USA) as well as a PhD in Aerodynamics from the University of Sheffield (UK). Sarah has participated actively in a range of other mentoring programmes, including SwissTec Ladies (Switzerland), FeelScience (University of Stuttgart) and TALENTA (Fraunhofer). She is also a qualified Business Coach (Trigon) and runs leadership workshops for engineers. Recently she founded a new Diversity Committee at the European Academy of Wind Energy.
Sigra Sharma
Regional Head Operations Integrity – Continental Europe and UK, Schlumberger
Sigra is a leader in the energy sector with an experience of over 15 years. In her career with Schlumberger she has worn various hats in line management and function management roles across Europe, Middle East and Asia. Through her expertise in Operations Management, HSSE-Q and Crisis Management; Sigra has ensured successful delivery of services and products to the clients over the years. She also has cross-functional experience in Project Management (certified PMP), Change Management and Learning & Development. She has been instrumental in ensuring business continuity and implementation of HSSE-Q programs in Europe and UK as Regional head for Operations Integrity during the pandemic; and prior to that in South Asia as Regional head for HSSE. She is taking up a new challenge leading Process Improvement in Europe and the UK and leading the BlueFLEX program for people returning to the workplace. She has been a speaker and panelist at various industry forums like SPE, IADC, IDEC and Global HSE Conference. Sigra holds B.Tech. from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Always looking to broaden her horizons, she has recently completed ‘Business and Climate Change: Towards Net Zero Emissions’ course at Cambridge University. She is a mentor at GWNET (Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition) and founding member at WIES (Women in Energy Sector) conference.
Suma Gopal
Operations Analytics Manager, Utopus Insights
Suma Gopal is the Operations Analytics Manager at Utopus Insights and responsible for driving the company’s customer analytics strategy and strategic account operations. Prior to this, Suma was the head of their Global Customer Relationship Management where she drove their product prioritization, customer engagement and commercial strategies with global teams that managed over 200 customers across 46 countries. Prior to that Suma led Business development for BLP Clean Energy and built their Renewable Operations Control Center to oversee customers’ asset management needs. Suma is an Electronics & Communication Engineer from India and a member of National Mentoring Committee for WRISE.
Amanda Niklaus
PPA Transaction Manager, Pexapark
Isabel Rodriguez
Investment Director, Glennmont partners
Isabel has more than 10 years’ experience in renewable energy transactions in Europe and emerging markets. In this time she led the origination, investment and financing of solar and wind energy projects globally. Before joining Glennmont, Isabel worked in Envision energy, based in London, being responsible for the origination and structuring of third party financing for all their LaTAM investments; previous to Envision she worked in EDF ER in London managing renewable M&A activity for renewable energy project in the UK and in Acciona energy in Madrid where she was responsible for the project financing of the company’s international Investments. Isabel holds a MSc in structural and civil engineering, from the Universidad Alfonso X in Madrid and a Executive development programme from the IESE Business school.
Judit Szasz
Senior Project Manager in Offshore, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy
Judit has extensive experience in Project Management as Project Manager, Senior Project Manager and Department Head. She – together with her dedicated team of individual contributors and managers – led complex telecom and renewables projects across the globe, mainly in Europe, Africa and Asia. She has dedicated the recent 14 years of her professional career to the wind industry with Siemens / Siemens Gamesa. Currently she is a Senior Project Manager in Offshore. Judit is based in Vejle, Denmark, after relocating from Shanghai in 2020. Judit is a Mechanical Engineer with an Edinburgh Business School MBA and a complementary diploma in Foreign Trade.
Karen Conover
Vice President of DNV GL Energy
Karen Conover is a Vice President of DNV GL Energy, a global risk management company with multiple renewable energy advisory and certification offices in the Americas, Europe, and Asia. She is the founder and former CEO of Global Energy Concepts (GEC), a leading consulting engineering company that specialized in the analysis, design, evaluation, testing, and management of wind energy systems and projects, prior to its acquisition by DNV in 2008. Karen has been working in the renewable energy industry for more than 30 years and she has been a member of the AWEA Board of Directors since 1997. She is a Past President of the AWEA Board, has served as Chair of WINDPOWER, and on the Nominations, Membership and Awards Committees. In 2010, she was recognized as the Industry Woman of the Year by Women of Wind Energy and in 2012, she received the Britt Theismann Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Wind Industry from AWEA. Beyond DNV GL, Karen is also a member of the board and co-founder of the parent committee at The Valley School, on the environmental grant committee of Social Venture Partners, and engaged in a number of local and national energy and environmental organizations.
Kasia Lindegaard
Head of Marketing & New Product Concepts, SCADA International
KATE FREEMAN
MANAGING CONSULTANT, BVG ASSOCIATES
Kate is a Management Consultant at BVG Associates, where she primarily focuses on energy modelling and analysis. Kate joined BVG Associates in February 2015 after completing her PhD with Plymouth University. Her doctoral thesis involved developing a system model of a wave energy converter and optimising its turbine speed for maximum energy output. Prior to her doctorate, she graduated from the University of Oxford with an MPhys.
Kavita Gandhi
Executive Director, Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore
Kavita Sinha
Programme Director for Clean Energy, Tara Fund, European Climate Foundation
Lucy Craig
Director, Growth, Innovation and Digital, DNV
Lydia Natalia
APAC Business Development Manager, wpd Japan K.K.
Lydia is in charge of Asia Pacific Region Business Development at wpd Japan K.K., subsidiary of one of the leading European Renewable Energy companies, covering the whole value chain of wind and solar power plants from the development, financing, construction up to operation, management and maintenance of offshore and onshore wind farms, and photovoltaic plants (PV). Her background is in business development, with a focus on renewable energy particularly in South East Asia region, and demonstrated history of working in the financial and consulting services industry. She is skilled in Origination, Negotiation, Business Development and Transformation, Financial Advisory, and Market Research. Lydia is an English and Indonesian speaker with Japanese and Chinese language skills, and holds a Master of Arts in International Economics from Waseda University.
María A. Talaván Luque
Head of Wind Turbines, EDPR / Engie JV
María is the Head of Wind Turbines within the Corporate Technical team of EDPR / Engie JV, focused on offshore wind. María joined EDPR in 2018 from GE Renewables, where she worked as Product Management Leader. Prior to that, she worked for Alstom Wind as wind turbine Certification & Compliance leader, and started her journey in the wind energy industry joining Vestas in 2007, where she held different positions in Technical Sales & Services, R&D and Product Management areas. María is based in Madrid, Spain, and has a Master Degree in Aeronautics & Aerospace Engineering.
Mary Thorogood
Government Relations, External Affairs and Communications Director
Mary joined the Net Zero Technology Centre from Vestas, the world leading wind turbine manufacturer, where she led Public Affairs for Northern & Central Europe. Mary has spent over 10 years in the wind industry, previously at the Swedish utility Vattenfall, building support in governments and society for sustainable, long term growth in wind and renewables to drive the journey to Net Zero. She holds a number of Board positions, including at Renewable UK and the Aldersgate Group, and participates in a number of initiatives such as Women in Wind, to support the long term strategic direction of the industry.
Regina Ranieri
Business Development Manager, UL Renewable
Regina Ranieri is the Business Development Manager for UL RENEWABLE in LATAM, biggest consultancy and certification company for renewable industry from USA. Regina is argentinian, and holds an Industrial Engineering degree (UTN) as well as a Master of Energy in CEARE – UBA. Regina has 8.5 years’ experience in renewable energy in Argentina and LATAM region. She has experience in manufacturing wind turbines and also in developing different renewable technologies. Regina is member of Global Energy Council and researcher in renewable energy and logistic in UTN. Actually Regina Ranieri is Director of an executive program in UCEMA, about development and financing of renewable energy. She is also foundation member for AMES ARGENTINA, a civil organization for women in energy, looking for gender integration in infrastructure and suitability sector.
Titiana Zincke
Head of Economic Development and Socio-Economic Development
Titiana joined Mainstream in April 2019 and heads up the Economic Development and Socio-Economic Development function for South Africa. She is responsible for managing the ED & SED team and their outputs according to the requirements of the Department of Energy and the project Boards. Her 25 years’ experience includes community and governmental stakeholder engagement, transformation, enterprise development, supplier development, socio economic development, sustainability, GRI, SRI, Carbon Disclosure Project, UNGC company reporting, implementation of human rights principles, project management, process and plant engineering, operation management, marketing relations, product quality, health, safety and environmental management, risk management, human resource management, industrial relations, employer representation at arbitration, mediation and conciliation cases at CCMA, skills development, employment equity. She holds a MTech degree in Business Administration and a BTech degree in Chemical Engineering. She is on the Cape Peninsula of Technology’s Chemical Engineering Advisory Board.
Toni Beukes
Non Executive Director, South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (SARETEC)
Toni has 12 years’ experience in the energy sector across oil, gas and renewable energy (specifically wind). She’s predominantly held roles in legal, governance, compliance, leadership and consulting. Her wind energy experience stems from her work in the South African renewable energy private sector working for a number of OEMs. Toni is currently the Renewable Energy Sales Leader for Southern Africa in onshore wind at GE Renewable Energy and a member of the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA). Toni holds a B.Juris and LL.B degrees, and MBA and LL.M degrees (with Distinction) from the University of Dundee in Scotland. Toni is a qualified Conveyancer and governance professional, accredited as a Certified Director of the Institute of Directors of South Africa.
