A day in the life of...Victorian Connections

What does your role involve?

At AEMO, it is our collective role to ensure safe, reliable and affordable energy today and enable the energy transition for the benefit of all Australians.

I lead the Victorian Connections team, which fulfils AEMO’s responsibility to manage the connection process of new generation and storage projects to the Victorian electricity transmission system. As Australia is currently experiencing the world’s fastest energy transition, this team is at the centre of this fundamental change. Victorian Connections actively engages with Generators and Developers to bring new renewable energy projects into Victoria, and also helps shape the future connections processes that will enable the ongoing rapid evolution of the National Electricity Market.

The Victorian Connections team is currently managing over 128 projects in various stages of the connections process, from initial enquiry to completion. We connected 1.6 gigawatts (GW) of capacity to the grid in the last 12 months, and this is projected to increase year on year.

Leading the team, I work with electrical engineering modelling, project management, infrastructure and stakeholder relationship teams within Victorian Connections to provide a collaborative, efficient and transparent connection process for all stakeholders.

Why AEMO?

I spent about 20 years at ExxonMobil through a variety of engineering roles including drilling, subsurface and reservoir engineering and joint venture management roles, working on assets in Australia, Gulf of Mexico, Eastern Canada, Chad and PNG.

Although I greatly value that experience, I was keen to move into a role that had direct impact on the energy transition. AEMO plays a fundamental role navigating this transition in Australia, and I could not be more thrilled to be here. In the Victorian Connections team especially, I can see the impact of our work to directly reduce emissions today and I’m excited to build relationships and act as a partner with proponents through all the complexities involved with connecting to the grid.

I have recently completed a Graduate Certificate in Climate Change Policy and an Executive MBA, and I sit on two boards in the research and decarbonisation space. I look forward to using these skills to bring a broad perspective from industry and higher education to AEMO.

In terms of culture and values, if you’d like to join an organisation that values excellence, integrity, empowerment and inclusion, AEMO is the place to be.

How would you describe your leadership style?

I have a collaborative leadership style and like to empower my team, but I also like to stay informed of my team’s activities and how we’re interfacing with other groups.