About Reykjavik Geothermal

Chelsea Cervantes, Geologist

Chelsea holds a M.Sc. degree in Sustainable Energy specializing in Geothermal Science from the Iceland School of Energy, at Reykjavik University. Chelsea also holds a B.Sc. in Geology from the University of Calgary in Canada. Prior to joining RG Chelsea worked as a geologist in Alberta’s oil and gas industry before switching to geothermal energy and relocating to Iceland. At RG, Chelsea specializes in geological modelling and has built 3D conceptual visualizations of geothermal prospects in countries around the world including Ethiopia, Mexico, the Caribbean and Colombia.

Gestur Gíslason – Senior Geologist/Geochemist

Gestur holds a degree in geology/geochemistry and has 35 years experience in the field of geothermal energy, of which 7 years were spent working on the East African Rift, including extensive work in Kenya. He has been active in exploration, field development and field management. He specializes in well flow testing, fluid chemistry, well operation (discharge and recharge) and environmental impact assessment and environmental monitoring. Gestur has been project manager and environmental expert in several projects which have been developed or are in development stage.

Guðmundur Þóroddsson – Chairman of the Board of Directors

Former Chief Executive Officer Reykjavik Geothermal and now Chairman of the Board of Directors, Gudmundur holds an M.Sc. degree in Engineering and an MBA. Gudmundur has 30+ years of experience in energy & utilities and played a leadership role in the recent expansion of the Icelandic geothermal industry. Guðmundur previously held positions such as CEO of Orkuveita Reykjavíkur, Chairman of Iceland Drilling, and Board Member of Enex and Enex China. During his carrier as CEO he strongly supported new areas in geothermal development, such as very deep drilling, new drilling technologies and RD support to universities and research institutions. Gudmundur is among a handful of CEOs in the world who succeeded in commissioning annually 50-100 MW of new geothermal power. This unique success rate can largely be attributed to his thorough understanding of the geothermal value chain, realized earlier by leading the right expert pool around Icelandic projects and now in Reykjavik Geothermal.

Gunnar Örn Gunnarsson – Chief Operating Officer

Gunnar holds an M.Sc. degree in Engineering. He has been in a leadership position in several industrial companies in Iceland and been a board member in many small and middle size companies. Gunnar represented the Government on the negotiating team in negotiations with Alcoa to secure its 340 tpa aluminium smelter which is now in full operation. Later he was a CEO of a Venture Capital Fund. For the last seven years Gunnar has been working in the power sector on business development specializing himself in contracting and financial matters.

Hjálmar Eysteinsson – Head Geophysicist

Dr. Hjalmar Eysteinsson holds a Ph.D. in Geophysics from Brown University, USA. He has been working in geothermal research for over 25 years as well as teaching in the UNU geothermal training program in Iceland. His main research activities are in resistivity surveying and interpretation of geothermal fields as well as designing software for the interpretation of resistivity methods. He has organized and managed resistivity surveys both in Iceland and abroad, mainly in eastern Africa. He has also been working on gravity data, especially microgravity for geothermal reservoir monitoring. He has been an active member of the Icelandic team, working on the Icelandic claim on the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond the 200 miles economical zone.

Loftur Reimar Gissurarson – Managing Director – Head of QHSE

Dr. Loftur Reimar Gissurarson has worked in quality management since 1990. He has implemented a number of audited and accredited management standards in companies, such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001, OHSAS 18001, ISO 27001, ISO 22000, ISO 15489, HACCP, CSR, Green Globe/Earth Check, BREEAM, COSO and Enterprise Risk Management COSO. Before joining Reykjavik Geothermal, he worked as Chief Quality Officer at Orkuveita Reykjavikur for 10 years where he managed with others the infrastructure of the company and re-engineering of processes. Loftur Reimar studied in Scotland where he obtained his Ph.D. in experimental psychology from the University of Edinburg.

Magnús Ásbjörnsson – Chief Executive Officer

Magnús Ásbjörnsson is a co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Reykjavik Geothermal (RG), one of the world’s leading geothermal development companies. He has been responsible for RG’s development activities in Africa since the company’s founding, including the development of the twin Corbetti and Tulu Moye geothermal projects in Ethiopia, which are expected to be among Africa’s largest IPP investments. He is also responsible for RG’s financing and investment activities around the world. In addition to serving on the board of RG, Magnus is a board member of Corbetti Geothermal and a founding investor in other ventures including Enerwhere, a rapidly growing distributed solar utility focused on the Middle East and Africa.

Before founding RG, Magnus was a management consultant, advising corporate and government leaders on strategy, investments, and economics across Europe, Africa and the Middle East. He has eighteen years of advisory, investment and general management experience spanning five continents and speaks five languages. He holds an MBA from London Business School and Columbia Business School, and a Bachelor’s degree (First in Class) in International Relations and Economics from Schiller International University.

Margret Thorarinsdóttir – Office Manager – Certified Accountant

Margret is a certified accountant with credentials from Reykjavik University Iceland. She has a Diploma in Tourism from the Icelandic School of Travel and Tourism and a degree as a waiter from the Hotel & Restaurant School of Iceland. Margrét has worked as an Accountant for 11 years and 5 years as cashier at the insurance company VÍS. She has managed and operated accommodation and food services for two of the largest Salmon rivers in Iceland for 4 years. In addition she worked at the reception desk of Hellisheidi power plant, as a waiter at Radison SAS Hotel Iceland and as a flight attendant for Icelandair (Boeing 757 and 767) during two summers. She is also a mother of four happy children that keep her very busy when she’s not at work.

Snorri Guðbrandsson – Head Geologist/Geochemist

Dr. Snorri Gudbrandsson holds a Ph.D. in Geochemistry, a B.Sc. in geology and a diploma in marketing. He has been involved in geothermal exploration and research since 2006, first as a borehole geologist at Iceland Geosurvey and later as researcher in the CarbFix and SulFix projects that aim to reduce gas emissions from Geothermal power plants.

Tómas Guðmarsson – Managing Director – Head of Engineering

Tomas holds a M.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering. He has been involved in the geothermal industry for over 24 years, and his experience in geothermal is both in the direct use of geothermal hot water as well as power production with geothermal steam. For over 12 years, he was the Manager of operation of Nesjavellir and Hellisheidi Geothermal Power Plants in Iceland for Reykjavik Energy, as well as two small hydro plants. The Geothermal plants are both CHP Plants (combined heat and power) rated power 423 MWe in 11 units. As a member of Reykjavik Energy’s New Power Generation Steering group he has been involved in design and developing these plants from the beginning.

Vilhjálmur Skúlason – Chief Financial Officer

Vilhjálmur holds a J.D. in Business Law from Bifröst University in Iceland and has over 30 years expertise in business contracting and business development. He has substantial international negotiations expertise; ranging from import/export deals to complex resource access and long time sophisticated power purchase agreements.

Trent Philipp – Chief Development Officer

Trent was a partner of Ambata Capital, LLC, responsible for US and European initiatives and relationships, including overseeing the strategic partnerships with Carl Hahn Partners, Sustainable Development Capital Ltd., and The Coalition for Rainforest Nations. He also served as CEO of Ambata Securities, LLC, a FINRA registered broker dealer focused on clean energy and sustainable development opportunities. Prior to Ambata, Trent was head of sales for the UK and Ireland at Soleil Securities, an independent equity research and brokerage firm. He was also responsible for initiating investment banking efforts in the Alternative Energy sector. He has been actively involved in conservation and non-profit efforts, including the establishment of the Fisheries Conservation Foundation and working with Peace One Day, a non-profit NGO dedicated to the establishment and observance of the International Day of Peace and Ceasefire. Trent Philipp has a BA in political science from the University of Richmond and an MBA from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

Lillian Kidane – General Manager, Ethiopia

Lillian Kidane is a global executive and senior public policy advisor with deep operational, financial and cultural expertise. She has held leadership positions across Fortune 500 technology firms, NGOs and global consulting agencies for over 2 decades in emerging markets. She has deep experience in strategic growth, project management, operational excellence and talent development which she has applied to engineering industries across healthcare, energy and transportation.

Through her time on General Electric’s Africa Leadership team, Lillian developed deep-rooted business acumen representing an evolution along functional management, technology development, program and partnership growth, market creation, solutions-selling and organizational development. She thrives in situations that require incubation of new commercial opportunities with uncertainty and those with business turn-around challenges that are difficult to surmount.

Lillian’s business innovation has allowed her the privilege to advise governments across Sub-Saharan Africa on policy reforms targeted at unlocking investment potential in competitive industries. Most recently, with her time at Dalberg Global Advisors, she has supposed industrial policy reform across Senegal, South Africa, and Ethiopia – to name a few.

Lillian completed her post-graduate fellowship in international healthcare management at Yale University School of Medicine (USA), holds a Masters degree in Public Health from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (USA) and a Bachelors degree from the University of Notre Dame (USA). Lillian is of Eritrean heritage and currently lives between Addis Ababa and Paris, France with her husband and 2 sons.

Read more about Lillian at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lillian-kidane-7406151b/