Following its recent $45 million Series A funding round from Chevron New Energies and Carbon Direct Capital, ION Clean Energy is bolstering its leadership team and has officially opened its new headquarters in Boulder, Colorado.
Steve Hirsh has been appointed as President and Chief Financial Officer. Previously, Hirsh served as Managing Director of Corporate Development at Proman, where his extensive experience in project development, finance, and commercial operations will enhance ION’s commercial, financial, and supply chain strategies.
Ben Gurtler joins as Chief Operating Officer from Koch Engineered Solutions, where he was the Commercial Director of Carbon Capture. His deep expertise in carbon capture will support ION in scaling its technology and forming strategic partnerships for project execution.
Jeannie Donovan comes on board as VP of Human Resources. Donovan, formerly of Velocity Global, brings her experience from scaling the company from 20 to over 800 employees across 40 countries. Her skills will be pivotal in expanding ION’s team to meet rising commercial demand.
“At ION, our cutting-edge technology is driven by our Founder and Executive Chairman Dr. Buz Brown’s vision,” said ION CEO Tim Vail. “With these new leaders, our world-class team will further our mission to deliver our technology to more customers and capture more CO2 emissions. The combination of our new hires, our new Boulder office, and the momentum from our recent funding position us for significant growth.”
The company’s recent achievements further highlight its momentum. In December 2023, ION’s capture technology was selected for the U.S. Department of Energy’s major demonstration program as part of Calpine’s Sutter Decarbonization Project, aiming to capture up to 1.75 million metric tons of CO2 annually.
In February 2024, ION completed a successful testing campaign at Technology Centre Mongstad (TCM) in Norway, showcasing its ICE-31 technology’s exceptional decarbonization capabilities with over 99% capture rates. Additionally, ION’s 10 TPD “Enterprise” Pilot facility at Calpine’s Los Medanos Energy Center has been operational since September 2023, achieving impressive results on low CO2, high O2 NGCC flue gas.
About ION Clean Energy, Inc.
Founded in 2008 in Boulder, Colorado, ION Clean Energy is a global leader in CO2 capture technology. The company’s proprietary liquid absorbent process offers transformative performance, capturing over 95% of CO2 emissions with minimal energy requirements and low emissions. For more information, visit www.ioncleanenergy.com.
