About us:  The team

Martin McAdam, Chief Executive Officer

Martin McAdam leads our Senior Management Team and sits on Aquamarine Power's Board of Directors as an Executive Director. He has a track record in building successful businesses in the renewables sector, having previously founded the North American operations of a major wind power company.

Prior to joining Aquamarine Power as CEO in 2008, Martin was the founder and CEO of the North American operations of wind power developer and operator Airtricity.  Martin went on to lead the sale of Airtricity USA to Eon in 2007 for £0.75 billion.

Before joining Airtricity (now SSE Renewables), Martin held a number of senior technical and management roles in the utility sector.

Martin is a Chartered Engineer, a Member of the Institute of Engineers of Ireland, a Fellow of Engineers Ireland and a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce. Martin also sits on the council of CBI Scotland.

Martin holds a BE (Hons) in Chemical Engineering and is an alumni of Harvard Business School, having completed its Advanced Management Program in 2004.

Richard Round, Chief Financial Officer

Richard Round is a member of our Senior Management Team and sits on Aquamarine Power's Board of Directors as an Executive Director. Richard has over 30 years of financial and operational experience in a range of quoted and private companies.

Since joining us, Richard has led the development and implementation of our business plan and corporate strategy, successfully securing around £40 million of funding for the development of our Oyster wave power technology.

Richard joined Aquamarine Power from Novera Energy plc in 2010 bringing with him extensive experience in raising finance and operating in developing international markets.

Previously Richard held a number of finance director roles in the renewable, oil and gas, coal and mining sectors with companies including Scottish Coal, AIM-listed Anglo Asian Mining plc and Cambrian Mining plc.

Richard is a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants.

Matthias Haag, Chief Operating Officer

Matt Haag is a member of our Senior Management Team. Matt brings combined experience from the renewables and the oil and gas industry.  Matt joined us from Shell WindEnergy, where he was General Manager of Projects. 

Since joining us as COO in 2008, Matt has led the set up of teams and systems for engineering, projects, R&D, procurement, operations, HSE and quality control. He successfully delivered the installation of Oyster 1 and managed the progression of the technology to Oyster 2.

Prior to joining Aquamarine Power, Matt spent 11 years working with Shell International in a number of senior technical and operational roles across Europe. In his previous role at Shell WindEnergy, Matt led major wind power projects in the UK, Netherlands and USA including the Dutch 36-turbine Offshore Windpark Egmond aan Zee.

Previously, Matt worked globally with Shell International in the oil and gas sector, specialising in offshore installation and project management. He worked on a number of offshore projects in the North Sea for Shell UK before becoming Lead Engineer and Contract Manager delivering the offshore pipeline network design for Sakhalin Energy (seconded by Shell).

Matt holds a diploma in Mechanical Engineering from Darmstadt University in Germany.

Ursula O’Brien, Human Resources Manager

Ursula O'Brien is a member of our Senior Management Team. Ursula has over 20 years experience in human resources, having previously held a number of senior roles within the National Health Service and the software industry.

Ursula joined Aquamarine Power in 2008 and has subsequently grown our team to over 60 people.

Ursula has developed and led the implementation of our recruitment and retention strategies, introduced a performance management system and expanded our staff development programme.  She has also led the development of our corporate culture with a focus on employee engagement and involvement to deliver on our company vision and values.

Prior to joining us, Ursula was Human Resources and Business Manager at a leading educational software company.  She previously specialised in employee relations and change management in senior roles at Lothian University Hospitals NHS Trust and City Hospital, Edinburgh.

Ursula is a chartered member of the Institute of Personnel and Development. She holds a diploma in Personnel Management, a BA in Business Studies and completed the NHS Training Scheme in HR Management.

Ursula is a volunteer member of the Scottish Government's Children's Panel.

Dr Paddy O’Kane, Chief Technical Officer

Dr Paddy O'Kane joined us as CTO in 2010, bringing with him over eight years experience in the renewables industry.  Paddy was previously Head of Engineering and Wind Resource Assessment at SSE Renewables.

Paddy now heads up our R&D team, located in Edinburgh and Belfast. His key responsibilities include research, physical and numerical modelling, technology development and management of our intellectual property portfolio.

In his previous role at SSE Renewables he was responsible for the technical design and specification of over £2 billion of renewable projects.

Paddy started his career with Du Pont and subsequently held a number of senior engineering and consultancy posts.

He holds a first class honours degree and a PhD in electrical engineering from Queen's University, Belfast.

His PhD analysed and quantified the system benefits of utilising sources of embedded generation within a national power system.

Paddy is a Chartered Engineer and a Member of the Institute of Engineers of Ireland.

Dr David Kaye, Chief Engineer

Dr David Kaye is a Chartered Engineer with over 20 years experience in engineering for the offshore hydrocarbon and renewable industries, with extensive training in civil and offshore engineering.

Since joining us as Engineering Manager in 2009, David has led our 20-strong engineering team in the design, construction and installation of our Oyster wave power technology.

Prior to joining us, David held a number of senior engineering management positions at BP Exploration Operating Company and Technip Offshore UK.

David holds a PhD in vortex-induced vibration in waves and a first class honours MA in Engineering, both awarded by Cambridge University.

David is a Fellow of the Institute of Marine Engineering Science and Technology and a Fellow of the Society for Underwater Technology.

He is also chairman of the Aberdeen branch of the Society for Underwater Technology.

Ian McCallum, Health, Safety and Environment Manager

Ian McCallum has 17 years' experience in Health, Safety, Quality and Environment (HSQE) Management.  He has extensive experience across various disciplines including construction, engineering, fabrication, heavy plant, high voltage electrical systems, and facilities management.    Ian has worked extensively at a senior level, reporting to Directors for multi-site and multi-functional organisations, managing both large and small HSQE teams.

Ian joined Aquamarine Power in August 2012.  He is responsible for delivering our health and safety strategy on a day to day basis and ensuring safety is integral to all activities.

Prior to joining us, Ian held a number of senior HSE management positions, including spending 11 years working with Babcock Rail and a year at Balfour Beatty Rail Projects.  He also spent four years with Forth Ports Ltd, one of the largest Port Organisations in the UK.  While at Forth Ports Ltd, Ian successfully achieved the OHSAS 18001 Health and Safety Management System accreditation and British Safety Council Five Star and Sword of Honour on behalf of the organisation.

Ian has qualifications in Civil Engineering, Fabrication and Welding and holds a Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety.  Ian is a Chartered Member of The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health.

Neil Davidson, Public Affairs Manager

Neil Davidson has over 15 years of experience in PR and public affairs having previously held senior roles in a number of public and private sector organisations. Neil joined us as Public Affairs Manager in 2009. Since then, he has developed and led the implementation of Aquamarine Power's PR and public affairs strategy.  He has successfully increased our media profile and secured our position as a key advisor on marine energy policy to the UK and Scottish governments and to the European Commission.

Neil is an active member of a number of associations working on behalf of the marine energy industry.  He sits on Scottish Renewables' Marine Work Group, RenewableUK's Economics and Markets Group and the Irish Marine Renewables Industry Association.

Prior to joining us, Neil managed Scottish PR and Public Affairs at BT Global Services for five years and previously held senior PR and public affairs roles at The Crown Estate and Scottish Natural Heritage.

He also acted as PR advisor to the Woodland Trust, was chairman of the charity Venture Scotland for over two years and spent a further two years in Chilean Patagonia as Country Director for youth development charity Raleigh International.

Neil previously trained in print journalism with DC Thomson and Co Ltd prior to freelancing with the BBC, The Scotsman and The Herald among others.

Neil holds an honours degree in Land Economy from Aberdeen University.  He is a member of the Association for Scottish Public Affairs.

Dr Garth Bryans, Head of Emerging Technologies and Energy Forecasting

Dr Garth Bryans has over ten years experience in the marine renewables sector and has held a number of senior technical and analytical roles.  He conducted an extensive body of marine resource modelling research whilst at Queen's University, Belfast and University College Dublin.

As Head of Emerging Technologies and Energy Forecasting Garth's key responsibilities include managing our resource assessment team, new technology development and the evolutionary strategy for our Oyster wave energy technology.

Previously Garth worked at Airtricity (now SSE Renewables) as Portfolio Risk Analyst and latterly as Marine Technology Analyst.

Garth is an active member of a number of advisory groups including the Electric Power Research Institute's wave modelling expert group, the Marine Renewables Industry Association group and the Marine Institute's advisory group.

Garth holds a PhD from Queen's University, Belfast and University College Dublin following his research into the impact of tidal stream devices on electrical power systems. He also holds an MSc in Applied Physical Oceanography and a BSc in Marine Biology and Oceanography, both from the University of Wales.

Professor Trevor Whittaker, Technical Advisor

Trevor Whittaker is Professor of Coastal Engineering at Queen's University Belfast and is a technical advisor to Aquamarine Power's research and development team.

Trevor is a recognised leader in the field of wave energy.  He was one of the pioneers in the design and installation of both the UK's first and second grid-connected wave power plant on the Isle of Islay in Scotland in the 1980s and 1990s. In the 1970s he worked with Professor Allan Wells on the design and delivery of the first Wells turbine.

Trevor is Director of Research of Queen's University, Belfast's Environmental Engineering Research Centre and leads the marine renewables research team.  Trevor has been involved in the design and deployment of several wave power devices and has supervised over 20 PhDs in wave power.

Trevor is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Professor Stephen Salter, Technical Advisor

Stephen Salter is Emeritus Professor of Engineering Design at the University of Edinburgh and is a technical advisor to Aquamarine Power's research and development team.

A pioneer in the marine energy field, Stephen is most well known for the Salter Duck wave power device which he developed with his team at the University of Edinburgh in the 1970s.  The Salter Duck was one of the world's first wave energy devices and continues to be regarded as one of the most efficient.

After announcing his retirement more than five years ago, Stephen continues to design and develop a range of technologies and innovations in many sectors including renewable energy, climate change and global warming.

Stephen is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and an MBE.  In 1986 he was awarded a Personal Chair in Engineering Design from the University of Edinburgh.

Allan Thomson, Technical Advisor

Allan Thomson founded Aquamarine Power in 2005 and was a non-executive director of our company until 2010.  Allan is now a technical advisor to our research and development team.

A pioneer of the wave energy industry, Allan previously founded Wavegen, the world's first wave energy company, in 1991.  Under Allan's leadership, Wavegen developed the world's first grid-connected wave power plant.  Wavegen was sold to Voith Siemens in 2005.

Allan previously founded and managed a number of successful technology development companies in the offshore oil and construction sectors. Prior to this he had a 30-year international career in engineering in the power, petrochemical and steel construction industries.

Allan is a Fellow of the World Technology Network and a founder member of the UK's Energy Ministerial Renewable Advisory Board.

Paul Capell, Chairman

As an experienced CEO and chairman, Paul Capell has worked extensively in the renewable energy, water, oil and gas sectors and has built a 30 year track record in starting, acquiring, building and exiting successful international businesses in the UK and overseas.

Paul is a founding director and CEO of EIDC Ltd, an environmental infrastructure development company which develops and funds waste and waste to energy projects. He also serves as non- executive chairman of Aerothermal Group Ltd, a waste to energy technology company.
 
Previously Paul served for ten years with the Weir Group where as, Chairman of Weir/VWS Westgarth Ltd, he led the integration of the Weir Techna businesses into VWS and as President of VW Major Industrial was responsible for building a large industrial projects capability and supporting European merger and acquisition activities.  He also served as Divisional Managing Director of Weir Techna and Managing Director of Weir Westgarth Ltd.

Paul also sat on the board of United Utilities and spent ten years with John Brown Engineers and Constructors Ltd where his roles included Engineering Director and Director Oil and Gas.

Paul is a Chartered Engineer and is a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and an Associate of the City and Guilds Institute.

Paul joined Aquamarine Power's Board of Directors as chairman in June 2012.

Martin McAdam, Executive Director

Martin McAdam is Aquamarine Power's CEO and leads our Senior Management Team. He has a track record in building successful businesses in the renewables sector, having previously founded the North American operations of a major wind power company.

Prior to joining Aquamarine Power as CEO in 2008, Martin was the founder and CEO of the North American operations of wind power developer and operator Airtricity.  Martin went on to lead the sale of Airtricity USA to Eon in 2007 for £0.75 billion.

Before joining Airtricity (now SSE Renewables), Martin held a number of senior technical and management roles in the utility sector.

Martin is a Chartered Engineer, a Member of the Institute of Engineers of Ireland, a Fellow of Engineers Ireland and a Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce. Martin also sits on the council of CBI Scotland.

Martin holds a BE (Hons) in Chemical Engineering and is an alumni of Harvard Business School, having completed its Advanced Management Program in 2004.

Richard Round, Executive Director

Richard Round is Aquamarine Power's CFO and is a member of our Senior Management Team. Richard has over 30 years of financial and operational experience in a range of quoted and private companies.

Since joining us, Richard has led the development and implementation of our business plan and corporate strategy, successfully securing around £40 million of funding for the development of our Oyster wave power technology.

Richard joined Aquamarine Power from Novera Energy plc in 2010 bringing with him extensive experience in raising finance and operating in developing international markets.

Previously Richard held a number of finance director roles in the renewable, oil and gas, coal and mining sectors with companies including Scottish Coal, AIM-listed Anglo Asian Mining plc and Cambrian Mining plc.

Richard is a Fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants.

Gary Steel, Non-Executive Director

Gary Steel is Head of Human Resources at ABB and is a member of the ABB Group's top management team, the Executive Committee. In his role as Head of Human Resources at ABB, Gary has streamlined HR operations around the world, expanding ABB's staff development programme and strengthening the company's health and safety culture.

Gary is also chairman of ABB India and ABB Sweden.

Gary joined ABB in 2003 after a long career at Shell. He joined Shell in 1976 and held a variety of positions in human resources management and development in Europe and Africa, in businesses ranging from chemicals to refining and from shipping to oil exploration.

He rose to be Director of Leadership Development in 1999 and, in addition, Human Resources Director at Shell Group Finance in 2002.

Gary is a Non-Executive Director of Harman International, the US based audio equipment specialist and chairs the Jürgen Dormann Foundation for engineering education.

Gary holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Edinburgh.

Gary joined our Board of Directors in 2010.

Girish Nadkarni, Non-Executive Director

Girish Nadkarni is Managing Director and Head of ABB Technology Ventures, ABB's corporate venture fund, which he established in October 2009. Since joining ABB in 2003, Girish has also been responsible for ABB's global cost migration programme and ran the global automotive business for ABB's Robotics Division.

Prior to joining ABB, he held the role of Chief Operations Officer at United Healthcare, worked on business development at GE Capital and on strategy for Jack Welch at GE, and was Senior Vice President at Prudential where he was responsible for creating the Pru-Shelf financing facility, which currently has 600 customers with a portfolio value of $47 Billion. 

Girish also had a stint as an entrepreneur when he founded and ran vSimplify, a venture capital funded start-up.

Girish started his career as an attorney on Wall Street focusing on international banking and mergers and acquisitions.

Girish earned his undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Bombay where he was a gold medalist, his masters of law degree from the University of Virginia which he attended as a DuPont Fellow, and an MBA from Harvard where he was designated a Baker Scholar.

Girish joined Aquamarine Power's Board of Directors in 2010.

Jim Wilson, Non-Executive Director

Jim Wilson has over 30 years experience in the UK energy supply industry and is the Investment Manager for SSE's corporate venture unit, SSE Ventures. During his career with SSE Jim has specialised in Electrical Transmission and Distribution including the connection of renewable energy projects and the installation and repair of submarine cable systems. The portfolio now includes 16 Cleantech businesses with an SSE commitment of just under £70m.

Jim is a non-executive director with (or on the boards of) three of SSE's portfolio companies: Smarter Grid Solutions, Burntisland Fabrications and Green Highland Renewables.

Jim is a Chartered Engineer and holds an MSc in Renewable Energy Technology from Loughborough University.

Jim joined our Board of Directors in 2010.

Frederik W Mowinckel, Non-Executive Director

Frederik W Mowinckel has over 20 years experience serving as CEO, director and chairman with a number of companies, delivering successful business development, investment and management strategies in 45 different countries.

Frederik is the Chairman of Bergensis Capital AS, an investment company based in Bergen, Norway, which hold investments in various unlisted clean technology companies.

Previously Frederik has led the turnaround and rebuilding of several global manufacturing and trading companies such as Hunton Fiber AS, TNC International (Asia) Ltd, Rikett Technology AS and Solar Integrated Technologies, Inc.

Frederik continues to sit on the Board of Skog Holding AS, and its subsidiary Hunton Fiber AS.  He is a Senior Advisor to Turquoise International Ltd, the London based boutique investment bank.  In addition, he is a Director of Mowinckel Management AS and Newcastle-based tidal energy company Oceanflow Energy Ltd.

Frederik holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Rhode Island, USA and completed the Executive Educations Directors' Programme at INSEAD, France.

Frederik joined our Board of Directors in 2007.

John Malcolm, Non-Executive Director

John Malcolm is an independent energy consultant with a broad international experience.

Previously, John served for 25 years in various capacities with Royal Dutch Shell plc, a global group of energy and petrochemicals companies, including as the Managing Director of Petroleum Development Oman LLC, the largest oil and gas producer in Oman, from 2002 to 2010, and as General Manager/Managing Director of Al Furat Petroleum Company, the largest joint venture oil and gas producer in Syria, from 1999 to 2002.

John is a director Foster Wheeler AG, a public listed international engineering and construction company.  He is also a director of Partex Oil & Gas (Holdings) Corporation, a private international oil and gas company.  In addition, he is a member of the advisory board of ASCO Group Limited, a private international Logistics Company.
John is a chartered engineer with a Ph.D. in Process Control Engineering.

John Malcolm joined Aquamarine Power's Board of Directors as a non-executive director in May 2012.

Tristan Fischer, Non-Executive Director

Tristan Fischer is the founder and CEO of Lumicity, the integrated solar power project developer, owner and operator backed by ESB Novusmodus, Ludgate Environmental Fund and 9Ren.

Previously, Tristan was CEO of Camco International, the award winning AIM-listed carbon developer, which held one of the largest carbon portfolios in the world.

Tristan has a track record in the global renewable energy sector, having previously worked as a project developer for Shell WindEnergy.

Tristan also led the establishment of new businesses in the wave and solar sectors for Shell Renewables and Shell Technology Ventures. He has widespread geographical experience in regions including Eastern Europe, South America and Asia, and has led a number of early-stage companies.

Tristan began his career with Citigroup project finance, developing power and infrastructure projects. Tristan has an MA (Hons) from Cambridge University.

Tristan joined Aquamarine Power's Board of Directors in 2007.