Utility Expert Melissa Chan Joins Fermata Energy
Melissa Chan joins Fermata Energy as Director of Grid Solutions and Strategic Partnerships
Fermata Energy Leadership Team Grows in Tandem with Interest in EV Charging Infrastructure
Charlottesville, Va. — August 24, 2021 — Fermata Energy, a leading vehicle-to-everything (V2X) services provider, is pleased to announce Melissa Chan has joined its leadership team as Director of Grid Solutions and Strategic Partnerships. In this role, Chan will develop strategic partnerships, projects and programs with utilities and other critical stakeholders. She will also become more engaged on regulatory issues.
Fermata Energy was founded to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) on the road and the transition to renewable energy on the grid. Their proprietary V2X technology turns EVs into energy storage assets, combating climate change, increasing energy resilience, and dramatically lowering the cost of EV ownership.
“Melissa Chan has over 20 years of experience advising, planning, deploying and evaluating energy infrastructure deployment from centralized coal to distributed energy resources and microgrids,” said David Slutzky, founder and CEO of Fermata Energy.
Recently, Chan served as principal and owner of Kendril, where she provided a go-to market strategy for growth-stage, clean technology companies, and electrification strategy for industrial operators. She also served as the CEO/co-founder of Camberline, a former meter data acquisition startup. Chan led business development and product strategy to prove out the hardware-driven platform.
In a prior role at Guidehouse (formerly Navigant), Chan served as a project manager for the $3.4 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s Smart Grid Investment grant program. She led a team of 13 analysts who collected and reported cost and benefit metrics of the 99 utility smart grid projects.
Chan also designed an energy research, development, demonstration, and deployment portfolio as a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard University. As a chemical engineer at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Energy Technology Laboratory, she oversaw several international research and development projects for integrated control of carbon, mercury, sulfur dioxide and nitrous oxides from existing coal-fired power plants.
“Melissa’s experience will enhance Fermata Energy’s position as the leading V2X company at a time when EV technology is still evolving,” Slutzky said. “Her skill set includes evaluating energy technology, energy and emissions policies and regulations, and market design. She has designed, overseen and evaluated early-stage technology pilots for the U.S. DOE, and managed procurement and integration of smart grid infrastructure for investor-owned utilities — which makes her the perfect person to round out our leadership team.”
“I am joining Fermata Energy at such a critical time in the evolution of electric vehicles,” said Chan. “I am excited for the opportunity to grow with Fermata Energy and, more importantly, bring stronger V2X technology to the nation’s grid.”
Earlier this month, Fermata Energy announced that Scott Brierley joined Fermata Energy’s leadership team as Director of Automotive and Strategic Partnerships. The V2X technology company also announced that former Reddit CTO and founding engineer at Pinterest, Marty Weiner, joined David Sandalow and Tony Posawatz and as a member of Fermata Energy’s Advisory Board.
About Fermata Energy
Park it. Plug it. Profit.TM Fermata Energy’s proprietary vehicle-to-everything (V2X) software platform and bidirectional chargers turn EVs into mobile energy storage assets, making it possible for EVs owners to combat climate change, increase energy resilience, and reduce energy costs. Learn more at www.fermataenergy.com, and follow us on Twitter (@FermataEnergy) and LinkedIn.