board of directors
Bertie Ahern is the Chairman of Island Green Power.
Bertie is the former Taoiseach of Ireland (Prime Minister) having served as a member of the Irish Parliament for almost 35 years.
He was first elected Taoiseach in June 1997, he was re-elected in June 2002 and again in May 2007 and is the first person in over sixty years to have been elected to that office on three successive occasions.
Bertie was the Minister for Labour from March 1987 to November 1991 and was appointed Minister for Finance on three separate occasions from November 1991 to December 1994.
Bertie was one of the prime architects of the Good Friday Agreement in April 1998 alongside the political parties in Northern Ireland, Tony Blair, Bill Clinton, Mo Mowlam and George Mitchell which set Northern Ireland on the trajectory of peace after thirty years of civil unrest.
During his second term as Taoiseach, Bertie became the president of the European Council in 2004. Under his presidency EU leaders agreed a European Constitution.
Ian has an established career in renewable energy and finance.
Since Ian co-founded Island Green Power in 2013 he has lead the company to become one of the world’s largest and most successful Solar Developers with over 1 GW of plants developed. Under his leadership, Island Green Power has grown from being a UK focused developer to a developer with operations in 5 markets who are well positioned to lead the energy revolution.
Prior to founding Island Green Power, Ian co-founded Scientia Solar which completed the development of 12 projects in Italy under the feed in tariff regime.
Before becoming involved in the renewable energy industry, Ian founded Liberty Asset Management in 1996, which grew to become one of Ireland’s largest independent financial services companies with assets under management of €300m. In 2002, Liberty was acquired by Eureko, a major European Insurance Conglomerate.
Ian is also an avid golfer with aspirations. He has competed in the prestigious Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Pro-Am several times.
Colm has an established career in renewable energy.
Since Colm co-founded Island Green Power in 2013 the company has grown to become one of the world’s largest and most successful Solar Developers with over 1 GW of plants developed. In time, the company has realised many market firsts such as some of the first grid parity projects in the UK and the first non-grant funded Utility Scale project in Australia.
Colm is widely respected in the industry and has a wealth of connections. He is a firm believer that the world is going through a once in a lifetime energy transformation where clean renewable energy is more affordable than conventional fossil fuels and an energy revolution is happening.
Prior to founding Island Green Power Colm co-founded Scientia Solar which completed the development of 12 projects in Italy under the feed in tariff regime.
Before Colm’s involvement in the renewable energy industry he owned a real estate development company which completed several developments in Eastern Europe in partnership with institutional investors.
Colm is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and a qualified private pilot.
Jose joined Island Green Power in 2021 as Chairman for Island Green Power Spain SL.
Jose was Minister of Industry, Energy and Tourism of the Spanish Government (December 2011-April 2016). Prior to this he was the Deputy Prime Minister of the Regional Government of the Canary Islands (June 2007-October 2010). Jose was also President of the Government (Cabildo) of Gran Canaria (June 2003-June 2007) and Major of the city of Las Palmas (June 1995-June 2003).
Jose founded Sorben Partners SL in February 2017 and is currently the CEO. Jose is also a Board member at Domingo Alonso Group, Servatur Hotels and Resorts. He is a Senior Advisor of Newry Global Media, as well as other companies related to telcos, industry, corporate finance, strategic consultancy, energy and infrastructure.
Jose is a senior economist and member – civil servant since 1984 – of the High State Corps of Economists and Commercial Counsellors in Spain. He holds a Degree in Economics, Universidad Autónoma, Madrid and a Degree in Law, Universidad Antonio de Nebrija, Madrid.
Denis O’Brien founded Esat Telecom Group (Esat) in 1991 to compete against the former state-owned telephone company in Ireland, Eircom plc. In October 1997, Esat, of which Mr. O’Brien was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, listed on Nasdaq (New York), Easdaq (Amsterdam) and the Iseq (Dublin). Esat, over a five-year period, raised $1 billion in equity and bonds in a number of successful U.S. and European public offerings. Esat established itself as the number two telecommunications company across the full spectrum of telecommunications services (corporate and residential), fixed-line, GSM mobile, data and Internet services and brought real competition and choice to the Irish telecommunications market. Esat Telecom Group plc was sold to British Telecom Group plc in January 2000 for $2.8 billion.
Mr O’Brien established Digicel in 2000 initially acquiring a licence in Jamaica. Digicel now operates in 32 markets across the Caribbean, Central America and in the South Pacific. It is the leading player in these markets with revenues in excess of $2.3bn and it employs over 3,000 people.
Mr. O’Brien was voted Ireland’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 1998 in the inaugural running of the worldwide competition organized and sponsored by Ernst & Young. Mr. O’Brien is also a director of a number of private companies that hold some of his other business interests including Quinta do Lago SA, PGA Catalunya and Actavo Group. In addition, Mr. O’Brien is the Chairman and Co-Founder of Frontline, the International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and a member of the board of Concern Worldwide. He holds a BA degree from University College Dublin and an MBA from Boston College, and he has an honorary Doctorate of Laws from University College Dublin.
Eric joined Macquarie in 2016 and is a Managing Director for Macquarie Asset Management (MAM), responsible for origination, execution, and management of onshore renewables investments across EMEA and the Americas.
Prior to Macquarie, Eric worked at First Wind and SunEdison, where he focused on renewables investments across North America and Europe.
He currently sits on the boards of directors at Island Green Power, Galehead, and Ventos de Sao Zacarias.
Eric holds a Bachelor of Arts and Science in finance from Georgetown University.
Dermot Hayes is an Investment Director with Island Capital and works exclusively for Mr. Denis O’Brien managing a diverse portfolio of investments in telecommunications, media, healthcare, leisure, property and many other private investments.
He has completed more than 50 investments and disposals across a portfolio of companies and raised over US$8bn in public and private market transactions with investee companies. He is a Director of Island Capital and a non-executive director of a number of portfolio companies including Island Green Power, Beacon Hospital, Actavo Group Limited and various Digicel subsidiaries. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.
Robert joined the Macquarie Asset Management in September 2016 shortly before the acquisition of the Green Investment Bank and the formation of the Green Investment Group.
Robert has over 18 years’ experience in Renewables and in particular the development and construction of onshore and offshore wind projects having worked as a Project Development Manager at both RWE Innogy and Ørsted leading the development of projects from site identification, permitting through to construction. At GIG Robert sits within the Engineering and Asset Operations team with a focus on supporting the commercial team on deployment and operations of established renewables, such as onshore & offshore wind and solar globally. During his time at GIG Robert has led on the procurement and structuring of all construction and operational contracts for over 1.2 GW of greenfield and operational onshore wind projects in the last 6 years.
Jonathan joined Macquarie in 2016 and is a Managing Director and member of the portfolio management team, specialising in the technical, operational, and commercial management of Macquarie Asset Management’s (MAM’s) renewable energy portfolio alongside transactional activities. He is responsible for the Macquarie GIG Renewable Energy Fund 1 (MGREF1) investments, a number of Macquarie GIG Renewable Energy Fund 2 (MGREF2) investments, and the offshore windfarms in Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 5 (MEIF5).
He has more than 20 years of experience in the asset management and renewable energy industry with extensive offshore wind experience. Jonathan joined Macquarie in February 2019, having previously led the London Array business, the largest offshore windfarm in the world at the time. He led the business out of construction, restructuring the setup, and optimising its operations. Prior to this, Jonathan spent three years at Petrofac, where he set up its renewable energy-focused operations. Jonathan also has extensive experience managing windfarm operations from his time at Airtricity, SSE, Nordex, and GE, having previously overseen Arklow Bank, Beatrice, and Greater Gabbard offshore wind farms, as well as leading the build out of the wider Airtricity asset engineering strategy.
Jonathan graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering from Trinity College. He received a Master of Science in renewable energy at Loughborough University, and a Master of Business Administration at Imperial College London.
Patrick Claffey serves as the Investment Director at Island Capital, a specialised advisory firm operating under the guidance of Denis O’Brien. Bringing over 20 years of experience, Patrick has a proven track record in fundraising, mergers & acquisitions, and strategic advisory. His expertise spans a variety of sectors, including telecommunications, media, technology, leisure, energy, and renewables, with a particular focus on Private Equity, Venture Capital, and Public Capital Markets.
Patrick's professional background includes roles at KPMG, where he earned his Chartered Accountant qualification, and Investec Ventures, where he contributed to investment strategies and business growth. At Island Capital, he plays a key role in directing investment strategies and fostering the development of the firm’s extensive portfolio.