4th AustralAsian Cleantech Forum Advisory Panel

Brian Price is the Founding Director of Financial & Energy Exchange Ltd and is actively involved in the development of the business and the driving of the forward vision. Brian holds a Master of Commerce (Tax and Finance) UNSW, and has over 22 years of experience in complex derivative transactions, option market making, highly specialised tactical portfolio overlay construction through use of synthetic and derivative products.

He has traded over 5 million futures and options contracts as principal and millions more for clients in derivative markets and has had extensive experience in many of the larger global derivative and equity exchanges.

A member of the PricewaterhouseCoopers private client services team, Adrian has over 13 years experience in advising and assisting companies throughout their growth cycles from early stage to “mid-cap” and exit stage. Adrian has experience in accounting, assurance and taxation services but specialise in assisting organisations in the process of capital raisings, strategy development, business acquisitions and divestments. These advisory services include mentoring businesses, providing insight on strategic considerations, performance of financial due diligence analysis and assistance, financial modelling, process management and overall transaction support.

Adrian brings valuable experience, knowledge and an understanding of the complex management issues companies face at varying time points in their growth. Adrian has extensive experience in new technology, information, communication, health, professional services and property sectors, as well as a depth of expertise in strategy and planning, project management, and commercial due diligence for new technology companies.

PricewaterhouseCoopers is committed to supporting fast growth companies, and the firm has a global program in place to support Companies with Extraordinary Potential (CWEP).

PricewaterhouseCoopers have an experienced team with a passion and focus on working with businesses with high growth potential and ambitious goals. The team provide companies with a key focal point through which all of their needs can be anticipated and satisfied as they move through the growth phases. The CWEP team includes specialists in accounting, audit, tax, legal and strategic advice, working together to offer comprehensive solutions in areas as broad as IP, grant applications and tax structuring for acquisitions or IPOs to name a few. This is supported by the firm’s industry expertise and external commercial network which is invaluable for identifying potential opportunities to support growth.

Rachel O'Neill was instrumental in establishing this new group which will focus on the evolving carbon finance market, seeking opportunities to build new capabilities and deliver client solutions. The CSG will work closely with other areas of nabCapital and the greater NAB Group by acting as a centre of excellence for all matters relating to carbon financing, including renewable energy, alternative energy efficiency, and other clean technologies.

Rachel has over 14 years of banking experience , the latter six years in Institutional Banking specialising in the energy and utilities sector in credit risk management and client relationship management roles. She holds a Bachelor of Economics and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Queensland.

nabCapital, a division of National Australia Bank provides risk management, funding and investment solutions to clients across NAB Group and manages the relationships of selected corporates on a global basis.

nabCapital has recently formed a Carbon Solutions Group ("CSG") to act as a centre of excellence for matters relating to carbon financing. The CSG will provide clients (from small, medium enterprises through to large corporates) with the best financial tools to manage their businesses in a carbon constrained economy.

Sean Wiles is an Investment Manager with CVC Sustainable Investments Limited (CVCSI). CVCSI is an unlisted equity fund that commenced operations in 2002 and is at the forefront of environmentally sustainable investment in Australia. CVCSI's objective is to create a diversified investment portfolio that generates exceptional returns to investors while delivering meaningful and measurable environmental benefits. CVCSI targets Australian listed and unlisted companies involved with addressing environmental problems or that are developing or utilising clean technologies across a diverse range of sectors.

CVCSI is part of the CVC Group of investment companies and shares an investment manager with CVC Limited, the best performing private equity fund on the ASX over 5 years. With over twenty years experience in the managed funds industry, the CVC Group has shared its maturity and strength with over seventy companies, establishing an investment philosophy that has yielded a proven reputation for partnering businesses with solid growth potential. CVC has significant experience and skill in investment selection, management and exit.

Sean commenced his career as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG, working primarily within its restructuring and insolvency division, both in Australia and the UK. Sean’s core experience has been in leading independent business, diagnostic and cash management reviews, operational and financial restructuring, turnaround planning and transactions due diligence for both Private and Public Sector participants. Since joining CVC last year, Sean has worked closely with a number of CVCSI's investee companies to develop and implement relevant and sustainable growth strategies. These strategies have included assisting the various management teams with sourcing and undertaking vendor due diligence on potential acquisition targets, capital and debt raising and implementing cost monitoring and operational restructuring measures. Sean has had considerable recent exposure to businesses operating within the renewable energy, agribusiness, biofuels and water services industries.

Along with environmental investing, Sean also has significant industry sector experience in government and health advisory, manufacturing, construction and pharmaceuticals. Sean has a bachelor degree in Commerce (Accounting and Finance) and is a member of the Australian Institute of Chartered Accountants and Insolvency Practitioners Association of Australia. He also holds board positions with CVCSI investee companies.

Michael O’Sullivan has been involved in project finance and infrastructure investment for over ten years and in 2003 was instrumental in establishing the environmental infrastructure investment portfolio for JF Infrastructure Pty Limited (formerly James Fielding Infrastructure). Since then, Michael’s focus has been on managing and growing this area of JF Infrastructure’s business.

Prior to joining JF Infrastructure, Michael was deeply involved in the private sector and government sides of the more traditional economic and social infrastructure financing transactions across the power, transportation, water and forestry sectors, with Lend Lease Corporation and then PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Michael currently sits on the AustralAsian Cleantech Advisory Board and the Infrastructure Partnerships Australia Energy and Sustainability Taskforce, is a member of the Environment Business Australia National Council and has represented the Mirvac Group in the Australian Business and Climate Group’s report “Stepping Up: Accelerating the Deployment of Low Emission Technology in Australia” which was released in August 2007. Michael is also a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Prior to moving into a career in finance, Michael completed his MBA at Cornell’s Johnson School in the United States following a career of more than ten years as a consulting engineer throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Prior to joining WilsonHTM Jamie had a 15 year career with Merrill Lynch including 10 years running their Australian institutional sales business in London. He returned to Australia in 2001 to run Corporate Broking and later was appointed Co-Head of Equity Capital Markets. He subsequently worked for Patersons Securities as a Director in Corporate Finance and then joined WilsonHTM in April 2007. Current responsibilities include execution of all capital markets transactions and origination of transactions with a focus on the clean technology sector. Jamie is a member of the AustralAsian Cleantech Advisory Panel and holds a Bachelor of Economics from Monash University.

Glenn provides specialized advisory services for those investors seeking entry into the Cleantech and Sustainable Responsible Investment (SRI) field. His 9 years of experience in the financial services and advisory industry supports his dedicated and passionate approach to identifying early stage companies on the verge of commercialization as well as more mature companies with established SRI principles of business.

Investing in Cleantech companies are a chance for the investment community to drive the development of society towards one which balances the competing principles of profitability and sustainability. Its easy to get excited about investing in a company that has the potential to ensure water security or eliminate greenhouse gases. But its not so easy to ensure that it can be done in an efficient and cost effective fashion, with a credible roadmap to commercialization and a management skill-set to execute the plan successfully. We aim to connect the two.

The principals of SRI do not just provide for an investment filter guided by ethics but also serves as a criteria for identifying outperforming companies on the share market. Those companies which rate highly for environment, society and corporate governance are less prone to the risk of financial and public relations shocks. Shocks which can decimate a brand or destroy a business model.

Glenn is a member of the Ethical Investment Association and Rotary and offers all investors in SRI and Cleantech companies a 5%-10% rebate of brokerage costs to charity. Rotary members also have the option of allocating this rebate to their home club.

Jane Sharwood is responsible for the overall management of the branch including ensuring the delivery of key projects, as identified within the City and Council plans, on time and on budget. Principally this involves the development of sustainable and thriving businesses, with a program focus on small to medium businesses while seeking opportunities to engage with the larger corporate sector. The international programs involve building Melbourne’s reputation as a place to work, do business, study and live. This also encompasses the fostering of Melbourne’s successful sister city relationships.

Ivor Frischknecht joined Starfish Ventures in 2005 after 15 years of hands-on management and investing experience. His focus is on cleantech investment companies that develop energy, water and environmental technologies. He also contributes considerable operational management depth in software and internet to the team.

Prior to joining Starfish, Ivor was a Director of the New Ventures Group at Idealab, a California-based firm that incubates and invests in early stage technology companies. Preceding Idealab, Ivor was a senior operating executive, including CEO, of several Silicon Valley startups in the energy technology, enterprise software and the Internet sectors. He was CEO of H2onsite, a hydrogen generation technology company, and COO of DMFCC, a micro fuel cell company. He co-founded a software company, Angara Database Systems, built it from zero to sixty employees over five years, raised US$40MM of top-tier venture capital and debt, and eventually merged it with a public company. Ivor has a strong international network of sources of capital, having secured lead investments from several top tier venture capital investors. He has helped companies grow as an independent investor, consultant and advisor, from incorporation through several rounds of financing.

Prior to becoming a technology entrepreneur and investor, Ivor worked as a strategic management consultant with Bain & Company and with the law firm Minter Ellison. Ivor holds an MBA from Stanford University and Bachelors of Economics (Hons) and Law from the University of Sydney .