About Us

James Milner

James has previously had the privilege of spearheading the establishment and growth of three remarkable enterprises from scratch. These companies include two engineering and technical consultancy businesses. This has allowed him the honour of creating over 200 highly skilled and diverse job opportunities, whilst simultaneously generating a value exceeding £1 billion to clients.

As the Chief Executive Officer of Equisera, he remains resolute in his commitment to pursuing excellence and harnessing innovative strategies to shape a thriving future.

David Gammon

David is CEO and founder of Rockspring, his family office, which provides capital and advice to UK-based disruptive technology companies. From 1985 until 2001, David worked as an investment banker. David is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, a member of the Scale-Up Institute and NED on the board of Raspberry Pi Limited.

Prof. John Oakey

John Oakey was a Professor of Energy Technology and Head of the Institute for Energy and Resource Technology at Cranfield University. John remains engaged in a wide range of research activities in the UK, Europe and on the international scene.

John chairs the EU COST Action 538 Management Committee on ‘High-Temperature Plant Life Extension’ and leads the UK side of a major collaboration programme with the US on ‘Advanced Materials for Low Emission Power Plants’, as well as assisting DECC in the development of further collaborations with the US. Since 1998, he has also been involved in technology transfer projects with China on gas cleaning, underground coal gasification and biomass co-firing.

Jonathan Milner

Jonathan, founder of Abcam PLC which was acquired by Danaher Corporation in 2023, is an experienced entrepreneur and investor and is passionate about supporting UK life science and high-tech start-ups. He has provided considerable investment and support to over 70 companies and has assisted three technology companies to IPO on the London AIM Stock Exchange.

Jonathan also co-founded the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath with Professor Laurence Hurst in 2018 and the Milner Institute for Therapeutics at the University of Cambridge with Professor Tony Kouzarides in 2015. He is Chair of Nuclera Ltd and Investor Director of Healx Ltd, Phoremost Ltd, and Shift Bioscience Ltd. Jonathan is founder and Chair of Sapperton Wilder, a nature recovery project in the Cotswolds using experimental regenerative agriculture.

Roy Phillips

Roy has a breadth of experience across industries and companies, from start-ups to PLCs. He thrives on managing rapid growth and change and has a passion for using financial insights to help drive business decisions. A keen chess player in his spare time, Roy has a forward-looking outlook and an acute analytical mind. He is thrilled to join Equisera and be part of the climate change journey.

Mark Wickham

Mark is an accomplished and highly respected engineer, with 40+ years in design and manufacturing of large-scale heat and power plants, and 12 years working specifically with fluid bed gasifiers. He is the inventor of six patents in the energy industry over the last 20 years.

Mark is responsible for the design and development of translational energy technologies, particularly hydrogen production from biogenic fuels, supercritical CO2 cycles, and carbon capture.

Nadia Shahanaz Hussain

Nadia has over a decade of experience leading brand and marketing strategy for high-growth organisations. She has held senior marketing roles, guiding businesses through periods of significant change, including navigating the challenges of the pandemic, delivering a six-figure website rebuild, and helping to shape and embed ESG strategy at an organisational level.

A self-confessed generalist with a strategic mindset, Nadia specialises in brand positioning, storytelling and growth strategy, supporting teams to define their identity, align around purpose, and move forward with clarity.

Motivated by the need for practical climate solutions, she leads marketing at Equisera, helping to scale the company’s mission to deliver clean, affordable, carbon-negative fuels that can compete with fossil energy.

Ekam Gill

Ekam is a research scientist specialising in feedstock analysis and technology development at Equisera. With a strong focus on innovation, her role involves designing and facilitating the execution of prototype test plans. She enjoys analysing prototype-generated data to uncover invaluable insights that will guide our research direction.

She also has a keen interest in conducting feedstock-related experiments to identify the optimal biogenic materials for our technology, as well as exploring their associated environmental, carbon sequestration and socioeconomic benefits. Ekam is committed to ensuring the acquisition of our feedstocks aligns with environmentally responsible and sustainable practices as well as food security.

Michael Sims

Michael joins Equisera as its research chemist, tasked with investigating the purity of our produced gases. His role entails the development of our sample collection, extraction and analysis methodologies. He also manages our in-house organic chemistry laboratory, ensuring our gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) is calibrated and operational for whatever analysis the team requires.

Michael’s background is from the Imperial College, London where he specialised in organic geochemistry. His research focussed on determining the effects of thermal maturation on organic matter, comparing laboratory rates to geologic ones using a combination of pyrolysis and GC-MS techniques. He looks forward to applying his insight into developing methods and understanding whilst at Equisera, making a substantial difference in the UK energy market.

Anthony Odongo

Anthony brings more than a decade of process engineering experience spanning both conventional and emerging energy technologies. He holds an MEng in Chemical Engineering from Aston University and a PhD from Imperial College London, and is a member of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE).

With broad experience across the full project lifecycle – from early-stage design through to commissioning and operations – Anthony leads Equisera’s engineering team as the technology advances towards commercial deployment.

Dr. Mohamed Maher

Mohamed is a chemical engineer with a Ph.D. from Lancaster University and a passion for sustainable energy. He specialises in hydrogen storage and carbon dioxide capture, having worked on groundbreaking projects like hydrogen storage tanks for mobile applications and energy-efficient carbon capture systems. 

With experience managing multi-million-pound initiatives and partnering with industry leaders, Mohamed is excited to play a key role in driving Equisera’s mission to decarbonise industry.

Chris Kowalczuk

A highly motivated Control Systems Engineer, Chris has over 20 years of experience in industrial automation and maintenance procedures. With a proven ability to work on developed code for PLCs such as Siemens, Allen Bradley, Mitsubishi, he has experience in diagnostics for electrical and mechanical faults, as well as implementing continuous improvement projects. He is skilled in working with multi-axis CNC machines, robots, and various highly regulated automation systems. Despite extensive knowledge of industrial systems he is always interested in latest developments in automation, OT systems and machine learning.

Ralph Gonsalves

Ralph is a Mechanical Design Engineer at Equisera, specialising in CAD design to support the development of the company’s commercial demonstrator. With a background in the waste-to-energy sector, he brings expertise in fluidised bed gasifiers, electric arc furnaces, and gas cleaning systems.

Proficient in Dassault and Autodesk software, Ralph combines technical design skills with hands-on operational experience, ensuring practical and efficient system designs.

Rob Hine

Rob brings over 25 years of fabrication and welding experience to the team, with deep expertise across MIG, TIG, MMA, mechanised TIG, and Submerged Arc welding. He is highly skilled in working with a broad range of materials – including Carbon Steels, Stainless Steels, Super Duplex, Inconel 625 and Incoloy 800H. His precision, craftsmanship, and commitment to quality make him a key asset as we move towards commercial deployment.

Rob played a central role in building Equisera’s first three RiPR prototypes: MILLIE, MICRO, and MINI. Now working in-house with the design team, he is focused on engineering refinements and will be instrumental in delivering our Commercial Demonstrator.

Sam Prout

Sam is a skilled coded welder at Equisera, specialising in GTAW (TIG) and MIG welding across a wide range of materials including carbon steel, stainless steel, Inconel, and Alloy 800HT. With hands-on experience in the fabrication, pipefitting, and mechanical installation of complex systems, Sam has contributed to the development of reactors, pressure vessels, and piping for various pilot plants.

His attention to detail and technical precision play a key role in delivering the high safety and performance standards required in hydrogen and clean energy innovation.

Andrew Ashman

Andrew brings a wealth of experience in risk control and legal compliance across the public, private, and voluntary sectors, both in the UK and internationally. Dedicated to protecting the business and its people, he is passionate about ensuring a safe and compliant work environment.

His extensive background equips him to navigate the complexities of health and safety, contributing to the company’s mission to shape a more sustainable future. Excited to be part of a young, innovative company, Andrew is eager to help steer Equisera towards success.

James Donaldson

James is a chemical engineer and PhD researcher at the University of Edinburgh, supported by an EPSRC Doctoral Training Programme scholarship. His work focuses on pressure swing adsorption for carbon capture and how advanced separation processes can be deployed at industrial scale. His master’s research examined the techno-economic viability of carbon capture across chemical industries.

Before his PhD, James worked on behalf of a major energy company negotiating agreements for trading gas, electricity and emissions credits, giving him insight into the commercial realities of energy systems. At Equisera, he applies his research directly to technology development, supporting the first industrial application of a pressure swing adsorption process devised at the University of Edinburgh.

George Gooderham

George joins Equisera as Junior Chemical Engineer, bringing his first-class Chemical Engineering degree from the University of Bath and invaluable experience gained during his successful industrial placement year with us.

During his placement, George made significant contributions to our technology development, including being instrumental in the re-engineering of our Micro V.2.0 system. His strong mathematical background and passion for data processing and analysis have proven invaluable in advancing our sustainable hydrogen technology.

George is excited to continue applying his academic knowledge in contributing to Equisera’s mission of creating a more sustainable future through innovative carbon-negative hydrogen solutions. His combination of theoretical understanding and practical experience makes him a valuable addition to our engineering team as we advance towards pilot-scale deployment.

Oliver Morris

Oliver is a Junior Researcher at Equisera with a background in applied and organic chemistry. He holds a first-class degree in Applied Chemistry and brings a curious, methodical approach to experimental research and analysis.

His academic work included a research project focused on developing a biodegradable alternative to a non-biodegradable polymer used to encapsulate membrane proteins, which sparked his interest in Equisera’s renewable approach to carbon capture. Oliver applies his experimental and analytical skills to support the development of carbon-negative technologies, contributing to laboratory research and the progression of our core systems.

With a keen desire to learn and apply chemistry to real-world climate challenges, Oliver is a valuable member of the team as Equisera continues to advance and scale its technology.

Zoltan Szabo

Zoltan is a versatile lab researcher with a degree in petroleum engineering. He can turn his hand to anything; being pivotal in setting up the apparatus, conducting experiments, and maintaining rigorous scientific techniques. Zoltan brings a strong analytical perspective to mechanical, electrical, and software-related challenges, coupled with an in-depth understanding of diverse control systems.

His speciality lies in rapidly diagnosing and rectifying faults or malfunctions, restoring them to optimal functionality to keep production unimpeded. With his unique combination of skills, he’s a crucial asset to our team, consistently fostering an environment of efficiency and innovation.

Sam Hemmings

Sam assists with operating, maintaining and refining our series of prototypes, helping to keep them running smoothly during the testing process. With a background spanning several industries, he brings versatility to the team, as well as several years of experience working with high-precision CNC machinery.

Alfredo de Lima

Alfredo brings a diverse background in engineering and facilities maintenance, with experience spanning construction engineering in the Philippines, residential care home maintenance, and facilities management. He holds a degree in Civil Engineering and is known for his practical, hands-on approach to problem solving.

Joining Equisera marks an exciting new chapter for Alfredo, and he is keen to contribute his skills and experience as the company progresses its scale-up journey towards commercial deployment.

Hannah Watling

As Office Manager at Equisera, Hannah boasts a diverse background and extensive experience. Originally trained as a psychologist, she ventured into education, obtaining a postgraduate degree and transitioning into primary school teaching. Her career led her to international schools in Hong Kong and Germany, where she merged work with her passion for travel, expanding her professional and cultural horizons. As a mother of four, she’s adept at multitasking and prioritising, and in her leisure time, Hannah finds solace in simple joys like walking her dog and practising pilates. 

Rachel Horrocks

Rachel holds a bookkeeping qualification from the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) and is currently pursuing an advanced certification in accounting. She has experience in various sectors, including finance, healthcare, and travel.

Motivated by a strong sense of purpose, Rachel was drawn to Equisera’s forward-thinking mission. As a mother of two, the company’s vision of creating a better future deeply resonates with her.

Rocky

Rocky is Equisera’s four-legged team member and an essential part of daily life at the office. Whether he’s joining the team for a walk, snoozing through meetings, or lending an ear during complex engineering discussions, Rocky has a knack for keeping spirits high. His calm presence and love of being around people make him a natural at boosting morale and reminding everyone to take a breather, even while tackling the big challenge of climate change.

Lily

Lily is Equisera’s resident security and a lively presence in the office. Always alert and quick to sound the alarm, she takes her role as protector seriously, even if it’s mostly bark rather than bite. When she’s not keeping watch, Lily brings a playful energy to the team, encouraging impromptu breaks, games, and a bit of joyful chaos.