Haafiz Hasham

President & CEO

MSc

Haafiz obtained his Master of Science in Quality Management from Robert Gordon University. In 2011, he joined the energy industry, spending almost six years at Cenovus Energy Inc., where he held multiple positions in Energy Asset Management.

Prior to joining the LiEP team, Haafiz held multiple positions at Southern Alberta’s Institute of Technology (SAIT) School of Energy, where he developed and delivered courses, and served on the Board of Directors for the Centre for Energy Asset Management Studies from 2013 to 2017. During this time, he sat on numerous committees focused on education development, stakeholder engagement, and identification of future trends in the energy sector. Additionally, Haafiz has also served as a Board Member for the Canadian Lithium Association.

Mike Mislan

Implementation and Operations Lead

BSc, PhD Candidate

Michael has a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering and is interested in the design of novel interdisciplinary techniques which integrate the extraction and transformation of resources into value-added products.

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He has experience in process design/operation, reservoir geochemistry, and water treatment supporting a polymer production plant at Nova Chemicals and a SAGD Pilot Plant with Laricina Energy Ltd.

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He currently holds five patents with more in development.

Dr. Majid Rasool

Material Scientist and R&D Lead

BSc, MSc, PhD

Majid joined LiEP in August of 2020. He plays a key role in progressing the company’s R&D, implementing new technology, and developing materials. Majid has a diverse educational and work experience background. He has over six years of global experience in researching and developing energy storage devices such as batteries and supercapacitors. After completing his undergrad, he moved to Munich, Germany where he worked for an IT-company. Majid also worked at and attended Munich’s Technical University (TU Munich). During his time at TU Munich, he worked in their materials department that developed solid-state electrolytes for lithium-ion batteries.

After graduating from TU Munich, he moved to Montreal to pursue an industrial doctoral program at McGill University. During his PhD studies at McGill, he was on a cathode development team where new chemistries for next-generation lithium-ion batteries were developed. This research was in collaboration with the internationally renowned battery research center (CETEES) at Hydro-Quebec. CETEES is focused on researching, developing and commercializing new sustainable battery materials.

Over the past five years, Majid initiated, developed, and led battery materials projects. He gained significant experience in battery electrochemical cycling, material characterization, degradation mechanisms, and developing novel coatings to increase battery cycle life. His latest collaborative research project [between Hydro-Quebec, McGill University and Canadian Light Source (CLS)] focused on the development of cobalt-free cathode material – the project received global recognition.

Majid holds a PhD in Materials Engineering from McGill University, a Master of Science in Engineering Physics from the Technical University of Munich, Germany, and a Bachelor of Science in Computational Physics from the University of the Punjab in Pakistan.

Edward T. (Ned) Beattie

Chairman

BSc (Honours), MSc

Edward T. (Ned) Beattie has over 40 years of experience in the energy industry. His expertise has been demonstrated in significant roles in large scale merger and acquisition deals cumulatively exceeding $1 billion in value. In December of 2005, as General Manager, Ned sold Kaiser Energy for $485 million. In 2006 Kaiser Exploration was formed, which Ned managed from inception until 2017, where he was accountable for the organization’s strategic growth initiatives and business development. Ned holds a Master of Science in Geology and Geophysics from the University of Calgary and a Bachelor of Science in Geology (Honours) from Guilford College.

Dr. Ian Gates

Director

BSc, MSc, PhD

Dr. Ian Gates has a track record of innovation and seeing new technologies through to commercialization. Notably, he recently co-founded two companies: Proton Technologies – a company that is field testing the production of hydrogen gas directly from oil sands deposits, and Solideum – a company that developed a better way to transport bitumen by turning it into dry pellets. In addition to his ability to scale technology, Ian is also a director of the University of Calgary’s $75-million Global Research Initiative, whose sole purpose is to translate lab-based technology innovations into field-deployable solutions.

Ian is also a Professor in the Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering at the University of Calgary. He worked for seven years in industry at Imperial Oil prior to joining the university. Dr. Gates holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Calgary, a Master of Science from the University of British Columbia, and a PhD from the University of Minnesota, all in Chemical Engineering. He is a registered professional engineer in Alberta.

Dr. Jingyi (Jacky) Wang

Director

BSc, MSc, PhD

Jacky Wang has more than 10 years of combined chemical engineering and reservoir engineering experience working with industry and research, with expertise in the areas of thermal recovery, cold production, VAPEX, CO2 sequestration, hydrate recovery, reactive numerical modeling, EOR, and production optimization. The majority of Jacky’s career has been with unconventional oil and gas development. He is a professional member with APEGA and SPE.

Jacky also has a proven track record of innovation and invention; he is the co-founder and co-inventor of the Hygenerator Patent used by Proton Technologies, which is a company that is field testing the production of hydrogen gas directly from heavy oil deposits in Saskatchewan. Jacky is also a co-founder of Solideum and co-inventor of their primary technology that enables the oil and gas industry to improve and diversity transportation of bitumen by turning it into dry pellets.

Jacky holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from East China University of Science and Technology, in addition to a Master of Science and PhD degree in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Calgary.

Karen Keck

Director

BA, LL.B.

Karen Keck, originally a farm girl from Saskatchewan, is a lawyer in Calgary, Alberta who strives to solve complex problems by creating opportunities and mobilizing people’s hearts and minds to do things differently.

Karen attended the University of Saskatchewan, graduating in 1999 with a Bachelor of Arts with honors in Psychology.  After living abroad for two years in Quito, Ecuador, Karen returned to Canada and went on to study law at the University of Calgary. She received her Bachelor of Laws in 2004. After graduating law school, Karen articled and then worked as an associate at Bennett Jones LLP in the corporate department until 2006.  At that time, Karen left the firm to pursue her interest in international human rights, working as a legal intern at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in San José, Costa Rica.  Upon completion of her term at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Karen returned to Bennett Jones LLP in 2007 where she practiced corporate law and became a partner in the corporate department. While at the firm, she advised publicly traded and private companies on legal issues relating to all stages of the business lifecycle. In 2018, Karen left the firm to found Legal Sneakers, which is a non-traditional law firm that focuses on providing legal services to start-ups and entrepreneurs. Although she doesn't always wear a suit anymore, as President and CEO of Legal Sneakers, Karen continues to offer sophisticated legal advice and is thrilled to be part of the start-up ecosystem in Western Canada. In addition to her legal work, Karen acts as a director of various start-ups.