PER's team of seasoned professionals bring a unique blend of experience and capability to our customers, positioning them for success with innovative industry solutions.
Managing Directors
Paul A. Barnett
Managing Director
Mr. Barnett is a co-founder of Pure Energy Resources. Prior to PER, he was a member of Calpine Corporation’s Boston-based Senior Management Team that initiated Calpine’s East Coast business operations, including the management and expansion of Calpine’s initial portfolio from 700 MW to in excess of 7,000 MW. He directly led the development effort to site and license the Osprey Project, a 660 MW CCGT facility located in Auburndale, FL, adjacent to the Auburndale cogen plant. He also developed a 50 MW peaker project and 79.9 MW CCGT project, both located at Calpine’s Bethpage, Long Island site.
In addition, Mr. Barnett led Calpine’s successful acquisition of the Cogen America 500 MW portfolio, Statoil’s interests in three Long Island, NY assets, and Edison Mission Energy’s interest in the Auburndale Power Partner’s project. He also led the divestiture of Calpine’s interests in the Bayonne Cogen and Lockport projects, and led the successful PPA monetization of the Newark and Parlin, NJ projects. Mr. Barnett’s experience includes responsibility for Calpine's Eastern asset optimization efforts where he had direct P&L responsibility for managing and improving over 20 operating and late stage development projects.
Mr. Barnett’s 28 years of experience in the energy sector also includes management responsibilities at Green Mountain Power, Unitil Service Corp. and Fitchburg Gas & Electric where he held a variety of positions, including responsibility for development and implementation of these organizations’ energy services programs.
Mr. Barnett earned a BS in Business Administration from Siena College, and a MBA in Business Administration from the Whittemore School of Business and Economics at the University of New Hampshire.
William Siderewicz
Managing Director
Mr. Siderewicz is a co-founder of Pure Energy Resources. Prior to PER, he was a member of Calpine Corporation’s Boston-based Senior Management Team that established Calpine’s East Coast presence.
Mr. Siderewicz was Senior Vice President responsible for new business development. In this role he led the successful development of seven gas-fired combined cycle projects totaling 4,400 MW. Mr. Siderewicz has over 29 years of experience in identifying and developing non-utility power projects in both the U.S. and abroad. This experience began with the development and ownership of large-scale solid waste-to-energy facilities on behalf of Wheelabrator-Frye (Waste Management).
His energy experience has incorporated a wide range of fuels such as biomass, coal, petroleum coke, geothermal, oil and natural gas. Through his association with such firms as British Gas and Oxbow Power, he has experience in all facets of power plant development and operation.
Mr. Siderewicz earned a BS (cum laude) in Civil Engineering from Merrimack College, North Andover, MA, a MS (fellowship) in Civil/Environmental Engineering from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and a MBA from Northeastern University, Boston, MA. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in New York and Pennsylvania.
Vice Presidents
George W. Bacon
Vice President, Development
Mr. Bacon has 36 years of power industry experience. As Vice President of Development at PER, Mr. Bacon’s responsibilities include analyzing, evaluating and managing both greenfield development and acquisition opportunities in the energy infrastructure sector.
Prior to joining PER, Mr. Bacon was a Development Manager with Calpine Corporation at its Eastern Regional Office located in Boston, Massachusetts. His responsibilities at Calpine included managing a multidisciplinary project team comprised of engineering, environmental and legal firms to develop modern greenfield gas-fired combined cycle power plants. He also served as Calpine’s Director of Water Technology directing the development of water management plans and systems for a wide number of Calpine’s large electric power facilities throughout North America.
Prior to joining Calpine, Mr. Bacon held various management positions over a 27 year career at Stone & Webster Engineering Corporation’s Boston Office, including Assistant Division Chief of Environmental Engineering and Consultant - Environmental. His project experience included both domestic and international power projects covering the full range of steam/electric power technologies including coal, oil and nuclear facilities.
Mr. Bacon earned a BS in Chemistry from University of Massachusetts Lowell and completed graduate level courses at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Northeastern University, Boston.
Timothy Leary
Vice President, Finance
Mr. Leary has over 16 years of experience in the Independent Power Industry primarily in the finance, development, and asset management areas. His responsibilities at PER include management of the economic analysis of potential project developments and acquisitions, project and corporate financing, contract negotiation and project development. Prior to joining PER, he was a Director of Commercial Management in Calpine Corporation’s Eastern Regional Office located in Boston, Massachusetts.
As one of the original members of the Commercial Management Team, Mr. Leary’s responsibilities included asset management of Calpine’s operating assets in the Northeast United States, acquisitions, divestitures, development support, financing and contract monetizations. His other industry experience includes his role as Director of Finance for Wheelabrator Technologies, the leading company in the waste to energy sector. His responsibilities at Wheelabrator included both domestic and international financial support for project development and project financing.
Mr. Leary has over six years of experience in Commercial Banking specializing in Project Finance. He was an Assistant Vice President in the Project Finance Group at Sumitomo Bank in New York City, and began his career in the Energy Sector as a Loan Officer in the Utility and Project Finance Group at Shawmut Bank in Boston.
Mr. Leary earned a BA from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and a MBA from Bentley College.
John E. Niland
Vice President, Business Development
Mr. Niland has over 29 years of power industry experience. Mr. Niland's responsibilities as Vice President of Business Development at PER include analyzing, evaluating and managing both greenfield and brownfield development and acquisition opportunities in the energy infrastructure sector and ensuring that the development effort is supported by financially viable long term contracts. He is a certified Professional Engineer and has been registered in the states of Rhode Island, Maine and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Prior to joining PER, Mr. Niland was responsible for development efforts with GreatPoint Energy (GPE), a startup company involved with the commercialization of a catalytic coal gasification process. At GPE, he was responsible for pursuing development opportunities with strategic partners including developers, coal suppliers and power companies. These responsibilities included management of the development process such as permitting, siting, budgeting and contracting of the facilities, as well as identification and screening of suitable sites for commercial facilities. These responsibilities allowed Mr. Niland to develop the GPE pilot scale facility being built at Dominion’s Brayton Point Power station.
Prior to joining GPE, Mr. Niland was a Vice President Development for NRG
Energy responsible for the overall development and project management of development projects being proposed on existing NRG sites in Connecticut. Projects included Cos Cob, Devon Middleton and Montville. Prior to NRG, Mr. Niland held various positions at Calpine Corporation, including Director of Project Development and Director of Asset Management. As Director of Project Development, Mr. Niland’s responsibilities included overall development and project management for several projects in multiple states simultaneously. As Director of Asset Management, he was responsible for several assets located in the PJM region. Prior to joining Calpine, Mr. Niland held several positions at Stone & Webster Engineering Corporation that included engineering, project management and business development.
Mr. Niland brings a unique combination of technical expertise, project development execution (construction) and operational experience, as well as an understanding of the energy markets and the strategic value various types of energy projects can add to the business. Over his career, Mr. Niland’s experience has included the successful development, execution and operation of projects involving multi-party joint ventures and projects that involve the use of complex technologies. Mr. Niland has a proven history of successful project development, project management, joint venture and partnership agreements. His project experience includes both domestic and international power projects covering the full range of steam/electric power technologies including coal, oil and nuclear facilities.
Mr. Niland graduated with Honors from Northeastern University in Boston with a BS in Mechanical Engineering.
Directors
Neil Collins
Director, Permitting & Community Outreach
Mr. Collins brings over 30 years experience in environmental permitting in government, consulting, engineering, and the energy industry. Early in his career, Neil worked within the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards. He also served as Director of Environment, Health and Safety for the Makowski/U.S. Generating Company, one of the first independent power companies, where he gained a Leadership Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Mr. Collins has directed teams of environmental scientists and engineers in siting and permitting power generation plants for 20 years.
Mr. Collins founded the Environmental Mentor Foundation to facilitate the transfer of best management practices and environmental technologies from large to small companies and delivered a White House briefing on this initiative. Mr. Collins co-founded the non-profit Trade and Environment Council to develop consensus opinions of international trade issues. On invitation, he participated in a White House Conference on Global Warming. He also served as a member of the U.S. Technical Advisory Group to the ISO Technical Committee on Environmental Management.
Mr. Collins holds his undergraduate degree in Philosophy (with Pre-Medical studies) from Holy Cross College and his Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University School of Law.
William Heeney
Director, Development & Development Engineering
Mr. Heeney has over 19 years experience in the power and energy industry. At PER, his role includes evaluating and developing new project opportunities in the energy sector as well as overseeing the technical support activities associated with the development of new projects from initial conceptualization and permitting through construction completion.
Prior to joining PER, Mr. Heeney was employed at Calpine Corporation in Houston, TX and Boston, MA from June of 1998 until March of 2007. At Calpine, he last held the position of Director of Development where he was involved primarily with the evaluation of new development opportunities as well as supporting strategic management activities associated with the regional power asset portfolio. Prior to that role, Mr. Heeney was Manager of Regional Engineering where he supported numerous new project development of gas-fired, simple and combined cycle energy projects that were successfully developed and constructed in multiple US power markets.
From 1991 through 1998, Mr. Heeney was employed by Stone & Webster Engineering Corporation in Denver, Co. At Stone & Webster, Mr. Heeney held positions in various roles including engineering contract support for multiple clients as well as direct involvement in detailed design activities for a wide variety of power plant systems. Project technologies supported included gas, oil, coal, nuclear as well as other niche process technologies. He also performed resident engineering duties at multiple power project sites in the US and overseas. From 1988 until 1991, Mr. Heeney was an officer in the US Merchant Marine where he was primarily responsible for the operation and maintenance of the main and auxiliary shipboard propulsion and generating plants aboard various ocean going vessels within the US merchant marine fleet.
Mr. Heeney earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Marine Engineering from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy.
Managers
Andrew J. Bazinet
Manager, Finance & Origination
Mr. Bazinet has over 9 years of experience in the power industry with focus in the areas of finance, development and asset management. Mr. Bazinet’s responsibilities at PER include new business development, financial and economic analysis, fuel and power market screening, and commercial contract negotiation support.
Prior to joining PER, Mr. Bazinet was a Finance Manager for Competitive Power Ventures, Inc. His primary role at CPV was providing finance support for CPV’s asset management and new business development initiatives including development of a renewable energy generation business plan, the procurement of a Reliability-Must-Run (“RMR”) agreement for Milford Power Company (Milford, CT) and active bid team participation for numerous RFPs.
Mr. Bazinet earned a BS in Business Administration from the University of Massachusetts Lowell and is currently enrolled in the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College.
