Management Team
Seth Fagelman, Chief Financial Officer
Seth Fagelman has served as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer since December 2009. He has significant financial and business experience, having previously held CFO and senior management positions for CyrusOne, Prime Cable and GW Communications. He currently serves as a strategic adviser and board member to several private companies. Mr. Fagelman has helped raise over US$1.7 billion in debt and equity capital to finance acquisitions and growth in the telecommunications, technology, manufacturing and distribution sectors. Mr. Fagelman graduated with an MBA from the University of Texas, Austin.
Gil Melman, General Counsel
Gil Melman became the General Counsel of the Company in March 2011. From August 2008 through February 2011, Mr. Melman was seconded to the Company to act as general counsel. During that time, Mr. Melman was a partner at Selman, Munson &Lerner P.C., a Texas based law firm specializing in corporate transactional work. Prior to joining Selman, Munson & Lerner P.C., Mr. Melman was employed as Vice President of Legal at a regional private equity fund and also as Vice President and Assistant General Counsel at a large Fortune 100 energy company. Mr. Melman began his career at Vinson & Elkins LLP, as a lawyer in its Corporate & Securities Group. Mr. Melman obtained his Bachelors of Business Administration and his Juris Doctor Degrees from the University of Texas, Austin.
Alvaro Kempowsky, General Manager – Madagascar
Alvaro Kempowsky is the General Manager of Madagascar Oil SA, having joined from Chevron Corporation in early 2007. Mr. Kempowsky spent much of his career as a Project and Operations Manager with Texaco in Colombia and Angola, including responsibility for, inter alia, operations and construction of heavy oil, light oil and natural gas developments. In addition, Mr. Kempowsky spent 14 years as the project manager for a new heavy oil steam project in Colombia for Texaco and Ominex. Mr. Kempowsky has a M.E. in Petroleum Engineering and an M.E. in Engineering Management from the University of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He also has a degree in Electrical Engineering from the National University of Colombia.
Dr. Emma Ralijohn, Deputy General Manager – Madagascar
Dr. Emma Ralijohn is Deputy General Manager of Madagascar Oil SA, having joined in 2007, and is primarily responsible for working with government authorities for contract and environment requirements. She has been a faculty member for a leading Business School in Madagascar since 1991. Prior to joining the Company, Dr. Ralijohn served as Finance Adviser to the President of Madagascar. She led her country in obtaining the first ever signed Compact with the USA-funded Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) and was named CEO of the entity set up to manage the US$110 million fund. She has served as a Director in the Banking and Financial Supervision Board of the Central Bank since 2005. She is the President of the Upstream Oil Companies Association and the Vice-President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Madagascar. Dr. Ralijohn has a Ph.D. in Finance and a Doctorate ès Sciences de Gestion in Strategic Management.
Jim Lederhos P.E., Chief Engineer
Jim Lederhos is Chief Engineer for the Company, having joined in 2008 from Chevron, where, over a 27 year career, he was involved in all aspects of steam flood design and evaluation of heavy oil projects worldwide, including California and Indonesia. Mr. Lederhos has co-ordinated all aspects of the Tsimiroro Field project design and evaluation for thermal testing. He has also served as a consultant for several heavy oil projects worldwide in the last several years. Mr. Lederhos has B.S. degrees in Engineering and Geology from Oregon State University in Corvalis, Oregon.
