Speakers

// David Suzuki

Dr. David Suzuki is a scientist, broadcaster, author, and co-founder of the David Suzuki Foundation. He is Companion to the Order of Canada and a recipient of UNESCO's Kalinga Prize for science, the United Nations Environment Program medal, the 2009 Right Livelihood Award, and Global 500. Dr. Suzuki is Professor Emeritus at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and holds 28 honorary degrees from universities around the world. He is familiar to television audiences as host of the multi-award winning long-running CBC science and natural history television series The Nature of Things, and to radio audiences as the original host of CBC Radio's Quirks and Quarks, as well as the acclaimed series It's a Matter of Survival and From Naked Ape to Superspecies. In 1990 he co-founded The David Suzuki Foundation to work with “government, business and individuals to conserve our environment by providing science-based education, advocacy and policy work for social change that today’s situation demands”. His written work includes more than 54 books, 19 of them for children. Dr. Suzuki lives with his wife, Dr. Tara Cullis, and family in Vancouver, B.C.

// Michel Letellier

Michel Letellier, MBA

President and Chief Executive Officer

 

Michel Letellier first joined Innergex in 1997 as Vice President – Finance. He was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in 2003, and later appointed President and Chief Executive Officer in October 2007. Mr. Letellier is responsible for providing strategic leadership and overseeing all of the Company’s business activities, in order to ensure its sound financial management and long-term sustainability.

Prior to joining Innergex, Mr. Letellier worked at Boralex Inc. from 1990 to 1997, where he was involved in the development and operation of several run-of-river hydroelectric projects and where he held positions of increasing responsibility. Prior to that, he spent two years as a member of the Corporate Finance group at Brault Guy O’Brien Inc. Mr. Letellier holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Finance) degree from Université du Québec à Montréal (1986) and a Master of Business Administration degree from Université de Sherbrooke (1988).

// Hank Petranik

Hank Petranik has almost 35 years of experience in the energy sector with a broad spectrum of professional and executive assignments. Over that time, he has worked in the upstream sector with stints at Home Oil, Dome Petroleum and Amoco Canada as well as in the utility sector with BC Gas here in Vancouver. Hank returned to consulting in the fall of 2010 after spending 7 years at TransCanada Corporation where he held executive responsibility for the LNG, CNG and Power Transmission businesses.

 

Hank has not only done business in North America but in other regions throughout the world and his resume includes having worked on his first LNG project over 30 years ago, ironically in British Columbia. Hank is a registered professional engineer in Alberta.”

// David Austin

David Austin is Associate Counsel to the firm and a leading lawyer in British Columbia in the field of energy, and
electricity in particular, and structuring private public partnership infrastructure projects, such as roads, bridges,
water and wastewater plants.

David has appeared before regulatory bodies on energy matters and was the legal advisor to the developer of
British Columbia’s first private public partnership. He has extensive experience with energy project development,
such as corporate structures, project finance, intertie access and formation of government policy. David has also
provided advice on the development of B.C.’s first independent power project and wind farm.

In addition, David practiced law in London, England, advising on international capital market and banking
transactions, including project finance, direct debt and debt/equity issues, commercial paper programs, swaps and
equipment leasing. He very actively participated in the development of the first securitizations in the London
market.

David is a speaker at numerous conferences in the U.S. and Canada and a regular contributor to various forms of
media. He has also been awarded the Clean Energy Association of B.C. Life Time Achievement Award.
Representative Work

Advising on energy projects involving First Nation developers, such as wind farms, run-of-river generating plants
and transmission lines.

Regularly appearing as counsel before the British Columbia Utilities Commission.

Negotiation and settlement of First Nation impact benefits agreements and acting as an independent monitor of
First Nations agreements concluded by others.

Structuring private public infrastructure projects, including roads, bridges, water and wastewater plants. Legal
Advisor to the developer of B.C.'s first private public partnership.

Active participation in the development of the first securitizations in the London, England market.

// Art Sterritt

Art Sterritt is currently the Executive Director of the Coastal First Nations- Great Bear Initiative (CFN-GBI) in Vancouver, British Columbia. As Executive Director he provides leadership and vision to ensure the CFN achieves its goal of an ecologically and economically sustainable coast now known as the Great Bear Rainforest.

 

The CFN is an alliance of First Nations on British Columbia's North and Central Coast and Haida Gwaii working together to develop and implement regional conservation-based economic strategies in forestry, fisheries and tourism.

 

Art, a member of the Gitga’at First Nation, has more than 30 years of experience in the areas of Aboriginal Rights and Title, as well as self-government and community economic development.

 

During the course of his career Art has served and continues to serve in numerous capacities for First Nations organizations, non-governmental organizations, as well as with the federal government. Some include the World Wildlife Fund, Northern Native Fishing, BC Treaty Commission, BC Salmon Marketing Council, BC Indian Arts and Crafts Society and Gitanmaax School of Northwest Coast Indian Art.

 

Art was appointed to a two year term by the First Nations Summit as one of the founding Commissioners for the B.C. Treaty Commission, an independent and neutral body responsible for facilitating treaty negotiations between Canada, British Columbia and First Nations in B.C.   The Summit, which is comprised of a majority of First Nations and Tribal Councils in B.C., provides a forum for First Nations in B.C. to address issues related to Treaty negotiations as well as other issues of common concern.

 

Art served as the founding chairperson and later first full-time president of the Tsimshian Tribal Council for five years. The tribal council served First Nations in BC and Southeast Alaska.

 

He later served as elected president of the North Coast Tribal Council, an alliance of Tsimshian, Nisga’a and Haida communities.

Art’s first love is his family which now includes 16 grandchildren.

 

His second love is carving. He is also a well-known artist, sculptor and goldsmith in B.C. and Canada. His work can be found in museums and private collections throughout North America.

 

Art is also popular on the lecture circuit and regularly speaks at universities and conferences throughout British Columbia and Canada.

// Steve Davis

Steve Davis, President of Steve Davis & Associates Ltd., has been a Director since 1992 and was President of the Association from 2001-2009, increasing membership by 1,500% and revenues to more than $1 million while guiding the Association through BC Utilities Commission hearings and BC Hydro Calls For Power.  He had previously been a project developer with Ledcor and established his consulting firm in 2002 which has carried out 20 assignments for hydro, wind and biomass companies.

// Dan George

Dan George is the President/CEO of Four Directions Management Services Ltd. (1993), a wholly owned Aboriginal economic, social and community development organization dedicated to responding to the expressed needs of individuals, organizations, communities and all levels of government in British Columbia, Canada, and abroad. FDMS has a diverse network of consultants providing expertise in strategic facilitation, conflict transformation, organizational development and communications.

 

He is a proud member of the Gilseyhu Clan (Big Frog) of the Wet’suwet’en people from Hagwilget, BC. He has been married for twenty-five years to his wife Teresa, and together they have two daughters, Amanda and Brittany, one granddaughter, Kiana and one grandson, Daniel.

 

Dan recently completed his Masters of Administration in Conflict Analysis and Management at Royal Roads University (October 2010). He also holds a Certified Professional Facilitator designation from the International Association of Facilitators.

// Bryan DeNeve

Bryan DeNeve leads Capital Power’s business development activities, commercial management of existing assets, and external and investor relations.

Prior to being appointed Senior Vice President, Commercial Services in January 2011, Mr. DeNeve was Vice President, Business Development, where he led development of the Clover Bar Energy Centre, development of several wind projects in Canada, and the acquisition of the Island Generation facility in British Columbia. From 2002 to 2005, Mr. DeNeve was Vice President, Regulatory Affairs for EPCOR Utilities Inc., where he was responsible for the development and execution of regulatory strategies and applications.

 

Prior to joining EPCOR in 1996, Mr. DeNeve was with the Alberta Department of Energy, where he participated in the development and implementation of the deregulated electricity market in Alberta.

 

Mr. DeNeve holds an MBA from the University of Alberta, where he also received his undergraduate degree. He is a graduate of Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program.

// Mark Tonner

Managing Director, Canada, GE Energy Financial Services

Mark is Managing Director at GE Energy Financial Services in Canada, based in Vancouver, British Columbia.  The business unit has more invested in Canada than any other country besides the United States.  Under Mark’s leadership, GE Energy Financial Services has played an active role in financing numerous Canadian energy projects, with renewable energy as its largest area of focus.  In British Columbia, GE Energy Financial Services has invested in the largest wind and run-of-river hydro projects in the province.

 

Mark has been leading GE Energy Financial Services’ business in Canada since 2004.  He joined GE in 1996 and, since then, has led a wide variety of debt, leasing and structured equity investments in Canada.  Mark holds a Commerce degree and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Saskatchewan.   Mark is active with numerous sports and charitable organizations throughout Western Canada.

// Merran Smith

Director of the Energy initiative, Tides Canada Foundation.

Merran Smith is the Director of the Energy initiative at Tides Canada Foundation. The project is bringing together a diverse array of organizations, businesses and others to build support for a bold, credible, and scientifically-relevant vision of a low-carbon future for Canada.  Merran has a long track record of forging groundbreaking partnerships between unlikely bedfellows. Merran was the lead environmental architect of the Great Bear Rainforest conservation agreement which protects over two million hectares of coastal British Columbia, while providing for new economic models to support coastal First Nations communities.

 

Merran is on the board of the Coast Opportunity Foundation, and serves on B.C. Hydro’s Electricity Conservation and Efficiency advisory committee. She won the Wilburforce Foundation award for Outstanding Conservation Leadership in 2006 and the Seasons Fund Transformative Leadership Award in 2009.

// Terry Brace, P. Eng.

Energy Leader, Teck Resources Limited

Terry Brace graduated from the University of Victoria in 1997 as a Mechanical Engineer.  He joined Teck shortly after and worked with a research group (called CESL Limited) to commercialize a patented hydrometallurgical (water based) process to refine base metal concentrates.  This is an onsite process to produce refined metal product, versus the sale and shipment of concentrate to smelters.

 

In 2009, Terry made the transition into a role of energy management at Teck, supported by Certified Energy Manager and Measurement & Verification training.  Initial efforts were project based, but have since grown to support the development and implementation of a Sustainability strategy.

// Graham McTavish

Graham McTavish is Vice President of Valard Construction and he oversees Valard’s Transmission Operations in British Columbia, and is also the Project Director on the 355km Northwest Transmission Line in Northwest BC.

 

Graham is a Civil Engineer with over 25 years of construction experience.  Prior to joining Valard, Graham held management positions with BC Hydro, Northeast Utilities Inc, and SNC-Lavalin ATP.

// Greg Smyth

Senior Project Manager, Knight Piesold Ltd.

Greg Smyth has worked in the mining industry for 15 years, and is presently a Senior Project Manager in the Vancouver office of Knight Piésold Ltd.  He focuses on managing Feasibility Studies and Environmental Assessments for mining projects throughout BC, the Yukon and other parts of North & South America.  His experience in both environmental and engineering disciplines allows him to bring engineers and scientists together to develop efficient & permittable mining projects.

// Travis Anderson

Manager Power Projects, AltaGas Ltd. – Power Division - Vancouver

Mr. Anderson has spent the past 10 years working on large-scale resource development projects throughout British Columbia. Prior to joining AltaGas, he worked for NovaGold Resources and Western Canadian Coal, where he played an integral role in the permitting, development and environmental management of several of their key assets within BC

 

As the Manager of Power Projects for AltaGas, he has played a pivotal role in the development of approximately 300 MW of renewable energy projects throughout British Columbia.  Mr. Anderson has specific experience in Project Management, Construction Planning and Implementation, Environmental and Regulatory Permitting; First Nation’s Impact and Benefit Agreement (IBA) Negotiations and Consultation; BC Hydro Power Acquisition Filings.

 

Recent project work includes the McLymont Creek, Volcano Creek and Forrest Kerr Hydroelectric Projects.

// Iain Cuthbert

President, Barkley Project Group Ltd.

 

Iain Cuthbert is President of Barkley Project Group Ltd., a project management consulting firm specializing in small hydropower development projects. Barkley Group has provided specialized consulting services to support more than 40 hydropower development projects in British Columbia and Yukon, ranging from 1 MW to 25 MW. This includes several hydropower projects for which First Nations communities are taking the lead role in project development and ownership.

Iain is also a hydro project developer and partner with the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations. Together they permitted, financed and constructed the 5.5 MW Canoe Creek Hydro project, which has been in commercial operation for more than two years, and they are currently building the 6 MW Haa-ak-suuk Creek Hydro project on Vancouver Island.