AmCham

Saudi Arabia

ESG Committee Presents:

ESG Finance Conference

SPEAKER BIOS

Luis was born in Covilhã, Portugal. In 1975 he finished his University degree in History. He worked for Marconi as Head of Department and at the Corporate Office. Later started an international career in Switzerland and developed an intensive activity at European and International levels.

During this period he participated in different international bodies such as member of the Joint Committee on Telecommunications in the European Union and "Chair" of diverse Work groups, member of the High Level Group on the Information Society. He was appointed as "Expert" by the European Commission to different "Working Groups" in the Telecommunications field as well as in questions related to "Information Society "issues.

In May 2004 Luis Neves joined Deutsche Telekom in the Corporate Sustainability and Citizenship Department. In May 2008 was appointed Head of Sustainable Development and Environment and as from December was assigned to the position of Vice President Corporate Responsibility. On January 2013 he was appointed Senior Executive Vice President Group Climate Change and Sustainability Officer.

Luis has been playing a fundamental role in promoting the role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in relation to Climate Change. In 2006 he was elected Chairman of GeSI, and together with the other board members, he successfully developed GeSI to become a recognized global organization in the sustainability area. Under his leadership, GeSI became a globally recognized Industry organization in the field of sustainability and a “thought Industry Leader” in the area of climate change.

Luis has been holding positions in many organizations and initiatives such as Chairman of the GeSI - Global e-Sustainability Initiative, Steering Committee Member of the United Nations Global Compact Lead Group, Steering Committee Member of the United Nations “Caring for Climate” Initiative, Member of the ERT - European Round Table of Industrialists Climate Change Group, Member of the SAP Sustainability strategy, reporting & assurance Board Advisory Panel, Co-chair of the ICT4EE Forum, Member of the International Chamber of Commerce Commission on Environment and Energy and Green Economy Task Force Meetings, Member of the Board of “Eco sense”, The German Sustainability Association, Member of the Environment and Sustainability Steering Committee of BITKOM, the German ICT Association , Advisory Board member of the UNFCCC Momentum for Change Initiative and Jury member of GreenTec Awards and Board Member of the World Resources Forum Association.

In 2017 he took the role of CEO of GeSI position that he holds today.

Georg Kell is Chairman of Arabesque, a technology company that uses AI and big data to assess sustainability performance relevant for investment analysis and decision making. He also advises business executives worldwide on sustainability and transformation issues.

Georg Kell is the founding Director of the United Nations Global Compact, the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative. During his career of almost three decades at the United Nations, he built the UN Global Compact and oversaw the launch of its sister initiatives, including the Principles for Responsible Investing (PRI), the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), and the Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE).

Mr. Kell started his career as a research fellow in engineering at the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology and Innovation in Berlin. He then worked as a financial analyst in various African and Asian countries before joining the United Nations in 1987. A native of Germany, Mr. Kell holds advanced degrees in economics and engineering from the Technical University of Berlin.

Nizar Kammourie currently heads the SAWACO Water and Industrial Divisions of the privately-owned Saudi Brothers Commercial Group in the capacity of CEO.

The SAWACO Water Division consists of three companies: SAWACO-Water Desalination - a private water utility, Suido Kiko Middle East (SKME) - a Japanese-Saudi EPC venture in the water treatment field and Chemsbro - specialist chemical services provider for the water treatment industry.

Mr. Kammourie sits in the Board of three companies: Rabigh-3, the largest desalination plant in the world, The Canadian Water Technology Company (Current Water Technology Inc.), and the Japanese EPC Company, Suido Kiko Middle East.

He manages as well the industrial division of SBCC comprising the precision engineering of FineTool and the special Plastic company of FinePlast. The Industrial Division consists of two companies: Finetool, a precision tooling company with involvement in the military, aerospace and industrial sectors and Fineplast, a specialized plastic manufacturing company in the pharma, medical, industrial and military sectors.

Mr. Kammourie has developed SAWACO-Water desalination, Saudi Arabia’s first private water utility, for Saudi Brothers Commercial Group in 2000. SAWACO has expanded its output capacity and extended its operating model to include BOT concessions.

SKME has secured many significant water treatment and re-use projects in Saudi Arabia for Clients like the Ministry of Water and Agriculture, National Water Company and leading public sector organizations. SKME is recipient of various prestigious international awards and recognitions.

Chemsbro has positioned itself as a leading supplier of water treatment chemicals in Saudi Arabia.

Being the member of Board of Directors of Rabigh-3 IWP representing SBCC, Mr. Kammourie was involved in the development of the world’s largest Independent Water Projects, Rabigh-3 IWP.

Mr. Kammourie has a keen interest in environmental matters and circular economy with special emphasis on sustainability. He currently sits on the Board of AmCham (American Chamber of Commerce) Jeddah and leads the ESG committee.

Born in Spain, Fernando Vallina is a graduate of the Autonomous University of Madrid, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry. He also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Instituto de Empresa in Spain.

Mr. Vallina joined ExxonMobil in 1987 in Spain and has held a wide range of management positions in sales, marketing, technology, planning and supply chain throughout the world, including in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Mr. Vallina was based in Saudi Arabia from 2001 to 2002 as Senior Core Venture Coordinator. Fernando also represented ExxonMobil in the Steering Committee that oversaw the Saudi Elastomers Plant investment in Al Jubail in 2015 and 2016.

Prior to his move to Riyadh, Fernando was Chairman ExxonMobil (China) Investment Co., Ltd. based in Beijing from 2017 to 2023, responsible for ExxonMobil activities in the People’s Republic of China. In April 2023, Fernando became Chairman, CEO & President for ExxonMobil Saudi Arabia Inc., based in Riyadh, with an oversight for all ExxonMobil affiliated companies in the Kingdom.

Mr. Vallina is on the Board of Directors the American Chamber of Commerce Saudi Arabia (AmCham KSA) and was elected as Director of Memberships.

Riham ElGizy has over 20 years of international experience dedicated to impact-related investments through her extensive work as a leader in mergers and acquisitions, as well as strategy and business development experience. She was formerly head of Saudi Aramco’s Investment valuations and structuring, the function responsible for advising and formulating investment decisions for corporate and executive management, as well as government institutions. Prior to joining Saudi Aramco, she spent 16 years with BP in North America and North Africa. ElGizy has a track record in originating and executing energy, clean technology, and renewable energy transactions across the globe. She has advised strategy and investment boards and led negotiations with governments and privately held institutions. ElGizy is a Sloan fellow MBA (MIT Sloan School of Management) and during her time at MIT, she worked on projects promoting sustainable economic growth in emerging markets through the deployment of innovative technology solutions and climate change simulations. She is currently CEO of the Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM). In her role at the helm of the VCM, she has launched the first voluntary carbon market in the MENA region and led the single largest voluntary carbon market auction to ever take place.

Dareen Ayyad is Saudi Arabia’s Country Manager at UL Solutions. With her role as Country Manager, Dareen is working to expand UL Solutions’ capabilities in Safety, Security and Sustainability in Saudi Arabia. UL Solutions provides third party certification and advisory services in Safety, Security and Sustainability.

Prior to joining UL Solutions, Dareen has worked on the development of renewable energy projects and climate change projects in the GCC region and Canada.

Dareen holds a Master’s degree in environmental engineering and bachelor’s in Chemical engineering.

Abdullah is a Senior Governance Consultant at stc. His focus area is Subsidiary Governance. He works to build a common understanding on all aspects of Governance and Compliance between the stc and the subsidiaries.

He worked as a corporate lawyer at Petro Rabigh, Emaar (King Abdullah Economic City) and the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul).

He was raised in Montreal, Canada. In addition to Arabic and English, he is fluent in French. He studied undergraduate and postgraduate law in England and has a Masters degree from IE University in Madrid.

He has participated in many speaking engagements on various Governance, Legal and Compliance topics.

Additionally, he is a country representative for the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) - the global bar associaton for in-house lawyers - in Saudi Arabia. He is a member of GCC BDI’s Board Secretary Advisory Board and a member of the The Corporate Governance Artificial Intelligence Advisory Counsel.

Christian Guckel is the Chief Risk Officer and heads research and responsible investments at SEDCO Capital. He started SEDCO Capital’s responsible investment practices.

Prior to joining SEDCO Capital, Christian was head of the asset class hedge funds and portfolio manager for a single-family office in Zurich, Switzerland, and a portfolio manager for Man Group.

Christian has over 20 years of professional experience in portfolio management, capital markets and risk management roles (Swiss family office, Man Group, HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein (now Commerzbank), Sparkasse). Christian holds a master degree from Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg, an MBA from Colorado State University and completed the CFA, FRM, CAIA, FDP and ERP degrees.

Nicholas is a Director in the Business Development team of Arabesque AI – a technology company that empowers portfolio managers to meet the evolving demands of clients, regulators, and the planet. He is based in the London office where he is responsible for sales and partnerships in EMEA and APAC. Prior to this, Nicholas worked for several years in fund distribution and played a key role in establishing Arabesque’s Singapore office.

Nicholas holds a BSc in Economics from University College London and is a CFA Charterholder.

Luma is a recognized sustainability consultant advising financial institutions and corporates on sustainability issues such as climate and sustainability strategies, incorporating sustainability into business models and policies as well as reporting in line with international standards. She advises regulators and financial markets including the UAE Securities Authority (SCA) on the UAE Green and Sustainability-linked Bonds and Sukuk Regulations (conventional and Sharia’a compliant). In addition to working with regional Exchanges on Sustainability related regulations, capacity building initiatives and capital markets sustainable products.

Luma is a recognized Islamic finance practitioner and pioneer, having been a finance partner and the global head of Islamic Finance at the “magic circle” law firm Linklaters and prior to that Allen & Overy. Luma played a part in the development of the capital markets most notably Islamic finance market in the region and globally. She acted for Banks, financial institutions, and corporates on many groundbreaking transactions covering finance and capital markets including Sharia’a compliant sukuk (bonds), loans, securitization and structured finance, derivatives and funds transactions.

She is regularly invited to speak about sustainability and Islamic Sustainable Finance in the MENA region and is a regular contributor to publications.

Mohammed S. Al Surf, holder of PhD. in Sustainable and Green Construction, currently holds the position of Senior advisor for Sustainability and Climate Action at Jacobs. Founder of the Green Building Training Center (GBTC) and the Sustainability Professionals in Saudi Arabia Network (SPSA) with more than 5000 members. Previous Regional Manager and Market Development for the U.S. Green Building Council in Saudi Arabia. A USGBC Faculty, LEED AP with speciality in BD+C, an ISSP SEA, an Envision SP, a Mostadam AP, and TRUE® Advisor. Author of several papers and books including, “10 Steps to Become a Sustainability Professional” and “Sustainable Housing in Saudi Arabia: Opportunities & Challenges”. Member of several local and international professional entities such as the Saudi Council of Engineers (SCE), the Pacific Rim Real-Estate Society (PRRES), Asian Real-Estate Society (AsRES) and Project Management Institute (PMI). Dedicated to promoting sustainability in Saudi Arabia and the MENA region by applying a systematic approach to Green Construction and Sustainable methods in projects to enhance quality of life while preserving the depleting supply of natural resources.

Tariq Al Ghaziri is the Deputy CEO of Avilease. Tariq is commercially minded and strategic, with expertise in Corporate Banking finance. He is a professional with the ability to spearhead and drive business transformation, formulate, and implement all policies, procedures, and systems and to develop and originate organizational strategies that identify and evolve structures to maximize productivity. Tariq has over 21 years of progressive financial advisory experience in driving company performance, leading, assessing, and implementing seamless operations to optimize bottom line performance.

Tariq is know for being highly committed to driving and expanding wholesale caproate banking and have used extensive experience and training in the use of complex corporate financial models for determination of debt capacity and estimation of credit risk. Tariq has led the establishment of the Corporate Coverage, Trade Finance, and Treasury functions, engaged with stakeholders, developed the structure, sourced key employees, and developed standards and workflows.

In his previous role. Tariq has led the organization through growth, consolidation, and expansion phases resulting in positioning Riyad Bank as the largest Saudi bank in project finance with a combined investment portfolio of hugely significant proportions. It has resulted the organization in making significant inroads through the Middle East, Europe, and globally which resulted Riyad Bank reputation as one of the largest international banks in project finance.

Tariq holds a Bachelor of Science in Statistics and Operations Research from King Saud University, Riyadh KSA, and a Master of Science in Finance and Risk Engineering from New York University, Polytechnic School of Engineering, USA.

Hazem Abdullah is a global business leader and capital markets expert with strong commercial acumen and business building pedigree. Over 28 years career across multiple sectors and geographies, from FMCG to strategy consulting, software start-up to financial services and real estate in Europe, Middle East, Asia, and USA. Results driven with a history of achieving revenue and capital raising targets while building strong relationships with fund managers, sovereign wealth funds, regulators and principal investors.

Iwan Walters is currently a Partner in the Eversheds Sutherland corporate practice, where he was the Dubai-based MENA Head of Clean Energy and Sustainability. He specializes in advising companies on their investments in clean energy, energy transition and infrastructure projects and he is ranked in the Legal 500 for infrastructure and projects. Iwan is also a board member of the Clean Energy Business Council.

Bandar Al Bleed is the Head of Client Relations Development at the Saudi Exchange, where he leads the Exchange's ESG and sustainability efforts. Bandar has held multiple roles in the technology and financial services industries.

His most prominent and lengthy tenure is with the Saudi Exchange, where he has spent the last eight years. At Saudi Exchange, Bandar established the Client Relations and Development function. He has served as the Head of Client Relations Development for the last 3 years. Prior to this, Bandar was a Client Relations Development Manager. Bandar has played a pivotal role in developing Saudi Exchange's Invest Wisely Program - a platform to help retail investors learn how to trade in the Saudi capital market. He has delivered new services to exchange Members, and currently leads the Saudi Exchange's ESG and sustainability efforts which are integral to supporting sustainable growth in the Kingdom.

Bandar is also an advisor board member for Prince Sultan University's center for Sustainability and Climate Change. Recently, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Arab Federation of Capital Markets Sustainability Committee.

Bandar holds an MBA degree from Alfaisal University.

A veteran of the Middle East recruitment industry, Simon started his career as an Environmental Scientist and has worked since 2005 in the recruitment of Sustainability and Environmental professionals. Based in the UAE and working across the region since 2010 he has worked with regulators, policy makers and the private sector to ensure they have the human capital necessary to realize their objectives.

Passionate about promoting an economy-wide approach to sustainability and the benefits this can offer to emerging markets Simon has built relationships through a comprehensive understanding of differing sustainability topics and crafted a bespoke approach allowing his clients to access the best talent pools. He has a particular passion for ensuring the full gamut of environmental benefits of Nature Based Solutions are understood and valued rather than defaulting just to pure Carbon value proposition.

Matteo is an international business lawyer with a Master's Degree in Finance from HEC Paris, specializing in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) matters. He is a qualified English Solicitor and a Certified Fraud Examiner, with extensive experience in corporate governance, financial transactions, and sustainability.

Throughout his career, Matteo has held senior positions in primary international public companies, where he has advised on several ESG initiatives including those related to the World Bank Carbon Fund. He has also been involved in project financing, private equity, and joint venture transactions. He has worked with host governments and multinational corporations in Asia, Europe, and the Americas, negotiating complex social and environmental projects and advising on risk management frameworks for large organizations.

Matteo recently moved to the Middle-East and joined Zahid Group as the Deputy General Counsel, based in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In this role, he advised on socially responsible investments in new energy solutions start-ups and negotiated private equity and financing deals. Matteo has a wife and two kids, and enjoys sports and volunteering in his free time.

David Staples is a Managing Director at Moody’s in the EMEA Corporate Finance Group based in Dubai. His responsibilities include managing the analytical teams that oversee the ratings of companies based in the Middle East, Turkey, South Africa as well as Russia and the CIS.

David has a Masters degree from The Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C. (1984) and a Bachelors degree from the University of Cincinnati (1982).

Omar Alajaji is climate Change and Sustainability Manager at EY. He is focused on Integrating ESG into businesses and address the challenges they face in this journey

Salman Aldukheil is a Director at Aldukheil and head of private transactions, the scope of which includes mergers and acquisitions, buy and sell side transactions, private placements, and strategic partnerships. Salman has broad industry exposure, and has successfully executed transactions within the retail, automotive, healthcare, real estate, industrials, infrastructure, and hospitality spaces.

From his passion of machines & cars, Abdulmohsin pursued an education in Mechanical Engineering, began a career with the Ministry of Energy to research enabling an automotive manufacturing hub in the kingdom, then half a decade later joined Lucid Motors to support Market Readiness & Product Marketing & celebrated the first EV Plant in the region.

Sarah leads Core Trade & Supply Chain Finance product strategies and launches for JP Morgan’s Middle East & Africa cluster with emphasis on key markets such as Saudi Arabia. She has over 10 years of Trade Finance experience across Citi, Deutsche Bank, and Natixis. She holds a postgraduate certificate in Sustainable Finance from the London Institute of Banking & Finance (LIBF) and was honoured as one of Binance’s scholarship grant recipients, enabling her pursuit of a Master’s Degree in Blockchain & Crypto. Driven by her passion for merging Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles with cutting-edge technology, Sarah’s mission centres around the integration of these concepts into the realms of trade finance and transaction banking. She also serves as a committee member at the International Trade & Forfaiting Association (ITFA) Middle East Regional Committee (MERC) and acts as ITFA’s Ambassador for Emerging Leaders in the region. In her most recent role, Sarah served as the Global Business Development Director at Impel, an innovative fintech built on the XDC Network Blockchain, driving peer-to-peer instant settlement for institutions globally.