David McFadden joins MaRS Advanced Energy Centre Board

TORONTO, May 28, 2015 – The Advanced Energy Centre (AEC) at MaRS Discovery District is pleased to announce that David McFadden has joined as its newest Advisory Board member.

David brings experience in energy and the electricity system from both business and policy perspectives with previous roles in government and the private sector. He currently serves as counsel in Gowling Lafleur Henderson LP and Chair of the Canadian and International Advisory Boards of Fengate Capital. He also serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Collus Powerstream Corp. and as Vice Chair of the Ontario Energy Association. David is a member of the Board of the Energy Council of Canada, and the Smart Grid Forum.

“The AEC continues to build an exceptional advisory team with expertise in local energy policies and in how jurisdictions are adapting to the fundamental shifts in the utility sector worldwide,” said Ron Dizy, Managing Director of the Advanced Energy Centre. “David’s leadership in the power industry will serve the AEC well going forward.”

“David’s unique international experience and contribution to Ontario’s energy policy will be key as the AEC fosters the adoption of innovative energy technologies here in Canada and around the world,” said Paul Murphy, AEC Board Chair and former President and CEO, Ontario Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).

About David McFadden
Counsel, Gowlings

David has played a key role in a number of initiatives relating to the power industry. He served as Chair of the Stakeholders Alliance for Electricity Competition and Customer Choice, a broad coalition of business and energy-related organizations including the Association of Major Power Consumers, Association of Exporters and Manufacturers, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, the Electricity Distributors Association of Ontario, the Ontario Energy Association and the Association of Power Producers of Ontario.

David was appointed by the Government of Canada to serve as a member of the Electric System Working Group, which was part of the Joint Canada-U.S. Task Force established to investigate the power blackout that hit Ontario and much of the northeastern United States in August 2003. In June 2003, David was appointed to the Ontario Government’s Electricity Conservation and Supply Task Force. The Task Force, which issued its final report in January 2004, provided a comprehensive strategy to meet the future energy demands of the province that has formed the basis of the Ontario current energy policy.

David was appointed by the Government of Jamaica to co-lead an investigation into the July 15th, 2006 blackout that cut off electricity supply to the entire Island. The report on the investigation submitted in December 2006 provides a blueprint for the enhancement of the reliability of Jamaica’s power system.

David is a member of the Smart Grid Forum of the Independent Electricity System Operator. In April 2012, David was appointed by the Minister of Energy to serve on the Ontario Distribution Sector Review Panel, which has been mandated to review Ontario’s Electricity Distribution Sector and to make recommendations to improve the efficiency of the sector.

David currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of Collus Powerstream and as Chair of the Canadian and International Advisory Boards of Fengate Capital. He is Vice Chair of the Board of the Ontario Energy Association and is a member of the Board of the Energy Council of Canada. He also serves on the Council for Clean & Reliable Electricity and the Advisory Council of the Waterloo Institute of Sustainable Energy. David was named the Leader of the Year by the Ontario Energy Association in September 2013.

About the Advanced Energy Centre
The Advanced Energy Centre (AEC) is a public-private partnership with the mission of fostering the adoption of innovative energy technologies in Ontario and Canada, and leveraging those successes and experiences into international markets. The AEC works with Canadian startups and SMEs in the cleantech and, specifically, the energy sector. Its role is to actively develop partnerships that will help bring these technologies to global markets. Within Canada, the AEC works to identify and remove systemic barriers to the adoption of energy innovation.