Board of Directors
Primary Energy Recycling Corporation is governed by a six member board of directors. Five of the directors, including the chair, are independent.
The Board members are:
- A. Michel Lavigne, Chair
- Rodney Boulanger
- Christopher H. Pickwoad
- Don Pether
- Lorie Waisberg
- John D. Prunkl
Biographies
A. Michel Lavigne, Chair of the Board of Directors: Mr. Lavigne is a director of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Richmont Mines Inc., TVA Group Inc. and Quebecor Media. Until May 2005, he served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton in Montreal, Quebec, Chairman of the Board of Grant Thornton Canada and was a member of the Board of Governors of Grant Thornton International. Mr. Lavigne is a fellow of the Order of Chartered Accountants of Quebec and a member of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. He received his Certification in Science Administratives from the Ecole des Hautes Études Commerciales in Montreal, Quebec in 1972.
Rodney Boulanger: Mr. Boulanger first joined the board in 2008. Mr. Boulanger has seventeen years of experience as a CEO and another twenty-four years of experience in executive management. Mr. Boulanger was previously the President and CEO of Midland Cogeneration Venture, which is the only conversion of an abandoned nuclear plant to a natural gas fired combined cycle cogeneration plant. Formerly, Mr. Boulanger was the CEO of the Great Plains Coal Gasification project, a project which produces high Btu substitute natural gas from lignite coal, and CMS Generation, which builds and operates electric power plants around the world. Mr. Boulanger holds a B.S. in Accounting from Ferris University and an MBAS from the University of Detroit.
Christopher H. Pickwoad: Mr. Pickwoad has served on the board since the Company’s inception in 2005. Until his retirement in 2006, Mr. Pickwoad held the position of Executive Vice President, CFO and Director of Novamerican Steel Inc. He has 25 years of experience in the steel industry and was employed by Novamerican Steel since 1982. Prior to 1982 he was a partner of a firm of Chartered Accountants having obtained the designation of CA in 1963.
Don Pether: From 2003 to 2006, Mr. Pether served as President and CEO of steel manufacturer Dofasco prio to the company's acquisition by ArcelorMittal. He was appointed Chair of Dofasco in 2006, before retiring in 2007 after 37 years with the company. Mr. Pether has held leadership positions with several steel industry-related associations, including past Chair of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Steel Producers Association, and past Vice-Chair of the American Iron and Steel Institute. He currently is Chair of the Board of McMaster University and sits on the Board of Directors of packaging and metal processing company Samuel Manu-Tech Inc. and Emera Inc., an energy services, infrastructure and utility company. Mr. Pether holds a Bachelor of Science in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Alberta and a Honourary Doctorate of Laws from McMaster University.
Lorie Waisberg: Mr. Waisberg joined Primary Energy Recycling Corporation as a Director on March 13, 2008 and was appointed to the board of managers on March 20, 2008. Mr. Waisberg practiced as a corporate lawyer in Toronto, Ontario for thirty years until August, 2000. Mr. Waisberg served as Executive Vice President, Finance and Administration and a director of Co-Steel Inc., a steel producer, from August, 2000 until October, 2002 when Co-Steel Inc. was acquired by Gerdau SA. Mr. Waisberg is Chair of the Board of Chemtrade Logistics Income Fund and a director of Norant Resources Ltd., Metalex Ventures Ltd. where he is Chair of the Audit Committee, and Tembec Inc. In addition, he has served on the boards of fifteen other Canadian public companies over the past ten years including Microcell Telecommunications, Centredfund Realty and Harris Steel. Mr. Waisberg received a B.A. and M.A. in History and an LL.B. from the University of Toronto, and an LL.M. from Harvard.
John D. Prunkl: Mr. Prunkl is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Primary Energy and is a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Prunkl’s experience includes leading EnerTech Environmental as its President and Chief Operating Officer during the commissioning of the world’s first SlurryCarb renewable fuel facility in Rialto, California. Mr. Prunkl held the position of President of Primary Energy and President of EPCOR USA, serving as manager of Primary Energy from 2006 to 2008. From 2001 to 2006 he held the position of Executive Vice President of Operations when Primary Energy and its predecessor Private Power experienced significant growth from a series of successful acquisitions.
Earlier in his career Mr. Prunkl co-founded MetroGen LLC, an energy start up company that was instrumental in the aggregation of standby generators in New York City that prevented brownouts and blackouts. In 1996 Mr. Prunkl joined Illinova Generating Company (now part of Dynegy) as Vice President of Operations where he managed a global portfolio of diverse power generating assets from wind to coal. During this same time period he also served as President of Illinova Resource Recovery, a subsidiary specializing in the generation of electric power from industrial waste byproducts. John Prunkl began his career at GE Power Systems holding a variety of management positions including leading the technical and commercial sale of gas turbines, steam turbines and turnkey power plants primarily in the Asian market.
John holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Auburn University, and a Bachelors of Arts degree in Mathematics from Huntingdon College.