Renewable energy company woos and wins top US energy exec

Tuesday 8th June 2010

New Zealand energy technology company LanzaTech has appointed a top United States renewable energy leader, Dr Jennifer Holmgren, as its chief executive.

LanzaTech was founded in early 2005 to develop and commercialise proprietary technologies for the production of lowest cost fuel ethanol from gases produced by the steel industry.

The move frees up LanzaTech's cofounder Dr Sean Simpson to move back into the laboratory as chief scientific officer and to work on some rapidly developing international projects, which remain confidential due to commercially sensitivity.

Dr Holmgren joins LanzaTech from UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, where she was Vice President and General Manager of the Renewable Energy and Chemicals business unit. In her most recent role, she led UOP's renewable business from its inception through to the achievement of significant revenues from the commercialization of multiple, novel biofuels technologies.

LanzaTech was established in 2005 in Auckland with strong financial backing from the Silicon Valley-based venture capital group Khosla Ventures.

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