On the Move: Former Ofgem boss joins Storegga board

In our latest round-up of recent industry moves, Ovo Energy announces the appointment of a former First Direct bank chief executive as its vice president of customer care and a former Ofgem chief executive has joined carbon management firm Storegga Geotechnologies as non-executive chairman.

Elsewhere, both Energy and Utility Skills and Low Carbon have announced the appointments of new non-executive directors.

Ovo Energy

Ovo Energy has announced that Joe Gordon, former chief executive of the bank First Direct, has been appointed as its vice president of customer care.

Gordon will be responsible for overseeing the operational activity and transformation of the supplier’s customer facing care teams.

He remains a non-executive vice president at the Institute of Customer Service and an independent advisor on customer experience to HM Revenue and Customs.

As First Direct chief executive, Gordon oversaw a period in which the bank won more customer satisfaction awards than any previous era in the company’s history. Earlier in his career he had customer-facing leadership roles at HSBC UK, BT and Sainsbury’s.

Commenting on the appointment Raman Bhatia, chief operating officer of Ovo Retail, said: “Joe brings an enormous amount of experience to Ovo Energy, from implementing customer-led change to leading digital transformations in the banking sector. He’s going to play a critical role in Ovo’s future.”

Gordon said: “Ovo Energy is well known for its focus on customers and empowering them to feel engaged and connected to their energy. I am delighted to join the team and lead customer care on the next stage of Ovo’s journey.”

Storegga Geotechnologies

Former Ofgem chief executive and current chair of Electricity North West, Alistair Buchanan, has been appointed as non-executive chairman at carbon management company Storegga Geotechnologies.

Buchanan was the head of the energy regulator between 2003 and 2013 and has more than 30 years’ experience in the industry. At Ofgem he led the creation of the regulatory structures for both the offshore wind industry and the total revision of the onshore network regulatory regime (RIIO).

Storegga says his experience will enable the company to provide further assurance to both the government and Ofgem during future critical discussions on both the shape of carbon and hydrogen markets, and the regulatory process to be adopted.

Buchanan trained as a chartered accountant at KPMG and then went on to become an energy sector analyst and head of research for banks in New York and London. Between 2008 and 2009, he was a non-executive director and member of the Audit Committee at Scottish Water.

Additionally, between 2018 and-2020, he was an independent non-executive director at Thames Water where he was also the chair of the Planning and Strategy Committee and a member of the Audit Committee. He also sat on the boards of Durham University, his alumni, and Royal Holloway University. He returned to KPMG in 2013 as a partner and served for five years.

Currently, he serves as chairman of Electricity North West and is also on the board of WH Ireland.

Nick Cooper, Storegga chief executive, said: “We are delighted that Alistair has agreed to join the experienced management team of Storegga as non-executive chairman.

“Our board and senior team have the skillsets and experience to play a leading role in meeting the UK’s net zero commitments and in delivering shareholder returns. Alistair joins us at a time of acceleration in both the Acorn Project and our international initiatives.”

Buchanan said: “The company is pioneering carbon reduction and removal for the net zero world initially through its Acorn CCS, Acorn Hydrogen and Storegga Direct Air Capture projects. These are positioning the UK as a global leader in CCS solutions. I am looking forward to working with Nick and the team to deliver for all Storegga’s stakeholders.”

Energy and Utility Skills

Energy and Utility Skills has appointed Jenifer Moody as a non-executive director to its board. Moody will also chair the board’s new End-point Assessment Compliance Committee.

She has more than 20 years’ experience in establishing and maintaining examinations and assessment, has held executive positions at awarding organisations and has acted as Ofqual responsible officer.

Established in 2014, the Energy and Utilities Independent Assessment Service (EUIAS) was formed to support the transferability of skills across and within the energy and utilities and adjacent sectors. To date it has completed more than 2,000 end-point assessments.

Speaking about the appointment, Phil Beach, chief executive of Energy and Utility Skills, said: “The EUIAS has been credited with leading the way since the start of the apprenticeship reforms in England, and the trust and collaboration built with the employers, training providers, regulators and government departments is something that we are committed to investing in.

“Dr Moody will be pivotal in ensuring that we continue to uphold the highest standards in assessment.”

Moody said: “I am really pleased to join the board at Energy and Utility Skills and chair the End-point Assessment Compliance Committee. I am passionate about vocational education and training and look forward to working with EUIAS, an end-point assessment service that has led the way in so many areas.”

Low Carbon Investment Management

Renewable investment management company Low Carbon has announced the appointment of Brian Clarke as a non-executive director to its board to help accelerate its investment in renewable energy infrastructure.

Clarke has worked as a senior investment professional at several infrastructure investment firms in a career spanning more than 20 years.

Prior to joining Low Carbon, Clarke spent nine years at global investment management company, IFM Investors, where he advised the senior leaders of the company on how to continue the firm’s growth efforts.

At IFM Investors, Clarke oversaw the growth of the firm’s asset base to more than US$100 billion under management across asset classes that included infrastructure, infrastructure debt, other private debt, listed equity and private equity offerings.

Prior to this, Clarke served as senior managing director at Macquarie Capital USA where he was responsible for raising investments and led a successful effort that directly raised more than US$8 billion for the private infrastructure fund offerings.

Roy Bedlow, chief executive at Low Carbon, said: “Brian brings a wealth of experience in our space and will bring that extensive knowledge to bear for Low Carbon. We are looking forward to working closely with him as we enter the next phase of our growth.

“In what is a crucial year for climate change, with COP26 rapidly approaching, we are already working to achieve our ambitious plans for the acceleration of renewable energy generation at scale and Brian will help us achieve that at an accelerated pace.”

Clarke said: “Since my retirement I have had many generous offers to join other organisations, but Low Carbon stands apart from any other firm I’ve considered.

“Their passion and proven capability to make a meaningful, positive difference in combating climate change and their technical expertise in the renewable energy space played a large role in my willingness to consider joining the team.”