About GeoGenCo USA
Our Vision
Charles Snyder
CEO & Manager
Mr. Snyder is responsible for the success of the Company. He has over 40 years of executive positions including corporate, financial and investment management positions in the energy, infrastructure, and mining sectors. Prior to becoming CEO for GeoGenCo USA, Mr. Snyder was a Managing Partner of Onset Capital, which managed the California Infrastructure Fund that provided financial to support to GeoGenCo USA, as well as other energy and infrastructure projects and assets. Mr. Snyder began his career with the Bechtel Group, where he provided development and financing for Bechtel sponsored and client projects and later was CFO and a Managing Principal of Bechtel Investments. He also has held global leadership positions at PricewaterhouseCoopers Securities, DynCorp International, Airport Group International, and has served on numerous boards.
Mr. Snyder is the CEO of GeoGenCo Project #501, LLC and Manager of the LLC and has held a range of senior executive positions with more than 40 years of experience in executive-level investment and financial management, including asset acquisitions and dispositions, project development, project and structured finance, P3 projects and global privatization.
Mr. Snyder began his career with the Bechtel Group, where he became the VP of Bechtel Financing Services providing project structuring and financing services for power, mining and infrastructure clients and structured project investments. He later became a Managing Principal of Bechtel Investments, Inc., where he served as CFO and as Managing Principal responsible for private venture investments, including investments in energy service companies and international investments.
Mr. Snyder later joined Airport Group International (“AGI”), a successful company specializing in the global airport privatization and investment, with projects in Asia, Latin America and Europe. Following the sale of AGI, Mr. Snyder became a Managing Director at PricewaterhouseCoopers Securities (“PWCS”), where he directed a global team in the airport sector, providing strategic and financial advisory services related to project financing, P3 and privatization projects, as well as M&A transactions.
Mr. Snyder’s experience also included a position of SVP at DynCorp International, where he built and managed a team that developed and financed projects, investments and joint ventures in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Mr. Snyder has served on a number of Boards, including GeoGenCo, MIH Water Technologies Inc., Global Capital Group, Peabody Holding Company, Luton International Airport, Servicios de Aerpuertos Bolivianos SA, Australia Development Group PTY Limited, Westralia Airports Corporation, Dual Drilling Company, Blue Mountain Mineral Company.
Mr. Snyder attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, receiving an MBA Degree in International Finance, and a BA Degree in History and Economics. Mr. Snyder also has taken post-graduate work in corporate finance at MIT.
Lee Rigney
President & CFO
Mr. Rigney has a successful 25+ year track record in financing and developing renewable energy projects and taking new companies from inception to successful operation and profitability. Mr. Rigney has been registered with FINRA for over 20 years. His experience includes Founder and President of Capstar Partners, Managing Director of Bankers Trust and EVP for Citibank.
Mr. Rigney established RLR Consultants to structure and raise capital for the renewable energy industry including financial structuring, contract negotiations and documentation oversight. He has structured project financings that include senior and mezzanine debt, tax equity and strategic equity. He has been registered with FINRA for 20+ years and holds Registered Representative (S7), General Securities Principal (S24) and Investment Banking Representative (S79) registrations.
At RLR Consultants, he worked on projects totaling more than $4.5 billion in assets and 1.5 Gigawatts in projected power generation, raising over $1 billion in financing, and has assisted most of the US-based geothermal companies. Before RLR Consultants, Mr. Rigney established Capstar Partners and successfully built the company into a global leasing company serving as President and Board member. With headquarters in New York (and subsidiaries in Hong Kong, London, and Paris), he developed Capstar Partners into a preeminent firm advising clients on tax-advantaged financing such as leasing and partnerships. In the US, he maximized the Federal incentives for the renewable energy industry, structuring partnership flip structures for geothermal, wind and solar companies.
Prior to establishing Capstar Partners, Mr. Rigney was Managing Director of Bankers Trust’s international leasing business. Prior to Bankers Trust, he ended a 13-year career at Citibank as Executive Vice President of its leasing group.
Mr. Rigney has the management and motivational skills to maximize performance of GeoGenCo’s current and future projects. His prior success in identifying and developing opportunities will assist the parent company in expanding into a number of opportunistic areas rapidly. He has a strong understanding of risk and reward analysis for strategic investments as well as the foresight, knowledge and skills needed to transition companies to meet changing, challenging opportunities.
Mr. Rigney received a Masters of International Management from what was then the American Graduate School of International Management, Glendale, AZ, and which was the #1 Ranked school for International Business for 10 years running by U.S. News and World Report. Mr. Rigney also received a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a combat veteran.
Dr. Ted Sumrall
CTO
Dr. Sumrall is one of the Founders of GeoGenCo and has overall responsibility for the technical design and performance of the Project. Dr. Sumrall has over 35 years of professional engineering experience and full responsibility for various aspects of numerous oil, gas, and energy projects. He has worked in many areas of the energy and power generation industry (including geothermal) both domestically and internationally (including Japan, New Zealand, and Italy) and has held numerous engineering and management positions with Chevron, Schlumberger, Baker-Hughes, and Jacobs Engineering.
Dr. Sumrall has over 35 years of professional engineering experience and hands-on management and technical responsibility for numerous multi-million-dollar oil, gas and energy projects. He has worked in many areas of the energy and power generation industry both domestically and internationally (including the geothermal rich areas of Japan, New Zealand and Italy) and has held numerous field engineering, plant engineering and management positions for domestic and international oil, gas and engineering corporations including Chevron, Schlumberger, Baker-Hughes, and Jacobs Engineering.
During the late 1980’s and the 1990’s, Dr. Sumrall was employed as a rocket scientist by the largest solid rocket propellant manufacturer globally, Thiokol Corp. During this period, Dr. Sumrall developed the Castor GEM Solid Rocket Booster propellant (TP-H8299) which is still utilized on Delta II and Delta IV and Titan 2S rockets.
As a full scholarship recipient from the Governments of Japan and the United States, Dr. Sumrall received a Doctorate in Engineering (Chemical Engineering) from the University of Tokyo, which is ranked in the top 15 Chemical Engineering programs globally . Dr. Sumrall also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Chemistry from Brigham Young University and an associate’s degree from The University of Florida. He is fluent in Japanese and has a working level proficiency in the German language.
Ralph Morgan
CRO
Mr. Morgan is responsible for establishing and managing the Company’s corporate and project risk management programs. Mr. Morgan has over 30 years of domestic and international experience in operations, project management, business development, financial services, and risk management. Mr. Morgan’s experience includes executive management positions, including executive risk strategy and insurance programs, as Director of Risk Management in London at the Bechtel Group, SVP for Strategic Business Development for DynCorp International and Risk Management Director for Onset Capital. He also served as SVP and Construction Practice Leader for Marsh & McLennan Companies.
Mr. Morgan has over 40 years of domestic and international experience in risk management, operations, project planning, business development, and financial services. His career has spanned multiple industries, with successful senior management and consulting roles in a number of major corporations.
Since 2012, Mr. Morgan has served as the Executive Vice President, Strategic Business Development for Quadrum Global, Inc., Mr. Morgan has managed the business growth and joint venture relationships for commercial and government opportunities worldwide.
From 2007-2009 Mr. Morgan served as Sr. Vice President, Construction Practice Leader for Marsh & McLennan, where he was responsible for the development of best practices and growth of risk and insurances services to the construction industry.
Prior to that, Mr. Morgan served as the Sr. Vice President of Strategic Business Development for DynCorp International, a Fortune 1000 global logistics, construction and government services company, where he managed a new growth and risk management strategy for project development in commercial related opportunities, including airports, logistics, infrastructure and master-planned communities worldwide.
Mr. Morgan spent the majority of his career with Bechtel Corporation (1979-2003) where he served extensively in the Middle East and Europe as a Group Manager. In Saudi Arabia he helped manage the successful launch and development of Jubail Industrial City.
While in London he served as Director of Bechtel Risk Management Limited where he designed and helped implement a state-of-the-art risk- mitigated, structured financial platform to support infrastructure projects in Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
In 1994, Mr. Morgan founded Global Risk Strategies Ltd. (GRS) and has served as the Chairman since that time. GRS is an independent project development and risk management consulting firm supporting large-scale global infrastructure projects.
Mr. Morgan also holds a BA in Business Administration from Arizona State University.
JOHN WHEELER
VICE PRESIDENT PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
Mr. Wheeler has led the development of Project #501 for over nine years, including the management of environmental and permitting efforts, as well as the negotiations of Project delivery and operating contracts. He also will oversee the construction. Mr. Wheeler has over 39 years in construction, development, and site acquisition in a variety of related industries. He has managed large project teams and has successfully financed and built large-scale developments. He is also the former owner for one of the largest Commercial Plumbing companies in San Diego, CA.
Mr. Wheeler has over 39 years’ experience in development and construction in the southwest. He co-founded and managed Mohave Desert Construction, Inc. which built six residential and condominium properties in Arizona and southern California over an 8-year period. Mr. Wheeler was responsible for overseeing all construction activities and negotiating contracts with all sub-contractors. He was also responsible for arranging the financing for each project and for establishing billing and collection protocols and for the accounting and tax departments. Mr. Wheeler was responsible for the development of each project, having earlier procured the land and negotiated all required permits.
Prior to Mohave Desert Construction, Mr. Wheeler was the founder and CFO/COO of Geyer Plumbing, Inc. which he managed for 18 years. He grew this company to over 150 employees in Southern California with annual earnings over $10 million. He was responsible for all financing, all construction bonding lines, as well as the company’s cash flow and tax filings.
Mr. Wheeler received his Bachelor’s in Business Administration (with a minor in Accounting) from Arizona State University in 1985 which is today ranked as #4 in the USA by the Sierra Club for its commitment to sustainability.
DR. DOUGLAS CHARLTON
CHIEF GEOLOGIST
Dr. Charlton is responsible for GeoGenCo’s resource assessment and development. Dr. Charlton has over 40 years in environmental engineering, mining, geothermal extraction and water resource management. He led environmental practices at Deloitte, Shaw Environmental and Infrastructure, GEI, and DuPont.
Dr. Charlton has over 40 years of experience providing technical consultation and advisory services in the fields of mineral and geothermal resource development, business management, water resource management, and environmental compliance. His specialties include the application of rigorous science and engineering to structured technical analysis, financial analysis, economic analysis, and risk analysis.
Dr. Charlton’s clients range from startups to Global 500 companies in engineering services, financial services, legal services, mining, geothermal extraction, heavy and light industry, energy, real estate, accounting, manufacturing, government agencies, insurance carriers, and water utilities.
Dr. Charlton is a leader in resource development and technical evaluation of potential mineral resource and water resource projects. He evaluates geological and engineering strategies and production forecasts as a technical expert. In water resource management, he uses system dynamic analysis to evaluate the economics and sustainability of integrated water resource management strategies, including water transfer options. His advisement has supported private companies, water purveyors, and public entities concerned with proactively managing water supply, geothermal supply, water demand and pollution problems. For environmental clients, he quantifies the risk and return of strategic alternatives and monetizes environment assets and liabilities for transactions, dispute resolution, disclosure and reporting, brownfields redevelopment, compliance action, and pollution cleanup.
Dr. Charlton is a Professional Geologist licensed in California and Arizona. His education includes degrees from the University of California (PhD), the University of Nevada Mackay School of Mines (MS), and Dartmouth College (AB). His post-graduate training includes coursework in risk management, dynamic analysis and resource economics provide by the Colorado School of Mines, McKinsey, DuPont, Deloitte, and the ATT Business School.
