Our People

Our People

Meet the leadership management team responsible for guiding our business

Tim Jessen

Tim Jessen

BEng (Chemical)(Hons), BSc

Chief Executive Officer

Tim Jessen

BEng (Chemical)(Hons), BSc

Chief Executive Officer

Tim has over 25 years’ experience in the oil and gas industry where he has worked on major onshore and offshore projects, both in Australia and internationally. His expertise covers the full project development and delivery lifecycle, from field development planning/concept selection and front end engineering design, through to construction, commissioning and operations. Tim has been with Lochard Energy since 2016, where he has overseen the significant expansion of the Iona Gas Storage Facility. Prior to joining Lochard Energy, Tim worked for Origin Energy where he held a variety of senior roles encompassing project management, asset management and corporate strategy.

Emma Ridout

Emma Ridout

MA (Hons), CA, GAICD

Chief Financial Officer

Emma Ridout

MA (Hons), CA, GAICD

Chief Financial Officer

Emma has over 20 years’ experience in finance and commercial roles. After starting her career at Ernst & Young, she led commercial teams at Siemens Mobility and Power & Gas. Before starting at Lochard Energy, Emma was part of the management team at Mondo/AusNet Services, where she held roles as GM Finance and GM Operations for commercial construction and services.

Jenny Smith

Jenny Smith

BA, MA, MAppSc

GM People, Safety & Sustainability

Jenny Smith

BA, MA, MAppSc

GM People, Safety & Sustainability

Jenny has over 10 years’ experience in the energy industry as a human resources professional. Prior to joining Lochard Energy she held human resource generalist and specialist consulting roles at Origin Energy, AGR (a Global Energy Services company) and in local government.

Becky Nguyen

Becky Nguyen

BEng (Electrical), MAppFin

GM Commercial

Becky Nguyen

BEng (Electricial), MAppFin

GM Commercial

Becky has over 20 years of experience as a Commercial professional in the Energy Industry. Prior to joining Lochard Energy, she held a variety of commercial management roles in upstream companies such as Cooper Energy and Santos, as well as Integrated Energy Companies including AGL, Origin and Energy Australia.

Becky holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (University of Nevada) and a Master of Finance (UNSW). 

Josh McKenzie

Josh McKenzie

BEng (Hons), BSc

GM Iona

Josh McKenzie

BEng (Hons), BSc

GM Iona

Josh has 19 years operations experience in both pharmaceuticals and predominantly oil and gas. Prior to joining Lochard Energy, Josh was the Operations Manager at the Otway Gas Plant in South West Victoria, responsible for running an onshore facility with supplied gas from both onshore wells and an offshore platform.

Paula Walker

Paula Walker

BEc(Hons), LLB (Hons), Grad Dip App Corp Governance

General Counsel & Company Secretary

GM Government & Regulatory Affairs

Paula Walker

BEc (Hons), LLB (Hons), Grad Dip App Corp Governance

General Counsel & Company Secretary

GM Government & Regulatory Affairs

Paula commenced her career at King & Wood Mallesons in 2003 in Mergers & Acquisitions (Projects, Energy & Resources subgroup). Before joining Lochard Energy, Paula held senior in-house legal roles at Incitec Pivot Limited and GE (Energy business), covering a breadth of legal matters including corporate, commercial, financing, competition law, and disputes. 

David Smith

David Smith

BEng (Chem), BBA (Hons), CPPM

Acting GM Major Projects

David Smith

BEng (Chem), BBA (Hons), CPPM

Acting GM Major Projects

David has over 20 years experience within some of Australia’s leading energy  companies with a core competency of Project Development and Delivery. Prior to joining Lochard, David held leadership roles across project, commercial and operations with Origin Energy.

Paula Walker

BEc (Hons), LLB (Hons), Grad Dip Corp Governance

General Counsel & Company Secretary

GM Government & Regulatory Affairs

Paula is responsible for the Legal and Compliance portfolios and is Lochard Energy’s Company Secretary. Paula also leads Lochard’s interface with Federal and State Governments and regulatory agencies. Paula commenced her career at King & Wood Mallesons in Mergers & Acquisitions (Projects, Energy & Resources subgroup). Before joining Lochard Energy, Paula held senior in-house legal roles at Incitec Pivot Limited and GE (Energy), covering a breadth of legal matters including corporate, commercial, financing, competition law, and disputes.