Our Team
Rondo’s leaders have developed new technologies
and built large-scale systems for industrial organizations around the world.
John O’Donnell
Chief Executive Officer
John has over 30 years of experience taking novel solutions from conception to reality across the energy, semiconductor and supercomputer industries. Prior to founding Rondo, John served as co-founder and vice president of development for GlassPoint Solar, which delivered solar industrial heat worldwide. He previously cofounded and led Ausra, a pioneer in solar thermal electric systems. John served as a lead engineer for Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, where he designed award-winning technology to support fusion experiments. He is a published author of numerous technical papers and holds more than 20 patents in the U.S. and internationally. John earned a B.Sc. with Special Distinction in Computer Science from Yale University.
Pete von Behrens
Chief Technology Officer
Pete is a veteran technologist and founder with more than two decades of experience developing safe, reliable innovations for global industries. He is a co-founder and former chief technology officer of GlassPoint Solar, where he architected the company’s product strategy and led a multidisciplinary team through technology development, bankability and megawatt-scale deployment. He holds 28 U.S. patents, including breakthroughs in energy storage and solar steam generation. Outside the energy industry, Pete’s work can be found in millions of automobiles, consumer and medical devices produced by leading manufacturers around the world. Pete served in the United States Air Force, supervising aerospace maintenance teams servicing U2-S reconnaissance aircraft across three continents.
Eric Trusiewicz
President & Senior Advisor to the Board
Eric Trusiewicz is a specialist on heavy industrial decarbonization, especially cement & concrete. He is active as a board member, advisor and operating executive working with venture-backed cleantech startups. Eric has worked on the topic as an entrepreneur in residence at the clean-tech venture capital fund Breakthrough Energy Ventures, as a fellow at Stanford University, and prior to that has a decade of experience in the cement industry in a variety of executive roles across Europe and the United States. Eric holds a Master’s degree in Management from Stanford University Graduate School of Business, as well as a Bachelor’s degree from Yale University.
Lily Guse
Chief Financial Officer
Lily is a finance veteran, with several decades of experience in leading financial operations for multimillion dollar companies and investment funds. Prior to Rondo Energy, she was the co-founder and managing director of HarvestWest, a $35 million agricultural fund focused on the Pacific Northwest. She also served as the CFO of electricity technology company PowerLight, and Intellectual Ventures Management, where she grew funds under IV management from $250 million to over $5 billion – and the finance staff from two to over 50. She was also the CFO of Cedar Grove Investments, where she managed the company's financial reporting and monitoring of the company's private equity investments. In addition to her CFO roles, Lily served as president of Cable Plus Holding Company, a medium-sized telecommunications company that provided cable and telephone services in 13 states. She has a B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Washington.
Ram Ramanan
EVP Engineering
Ram, with over 30 years of experience in Cleantech, Semiconductors, and Software industries, has a proven track record of creating innovative products and driving company growth. He holds 48 patents and was a key engineering leader at Bloom Energy driving operational efficiency and growth, leading to significant cost savings. Ram’s educational background includes a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from The Ohio State University, and a Certificate of Business Excellence from UC Berkeley. He is also a registered Professional Engineer in Texas. Beyond his professional achievements, Ram is deeply committed to community service, having conducted numerous workshops on meditation and leadership. His diverse experiences have equipped him to inspire teams to think big and act purposefully.
Karim Ibrik
EVP Commercial
Karim brings to Rondo Energy a decade of experience in industrial processes, with hands-on experience in novel process design, operations, development, and financing. He started his career working in Shell in a number of engineering and technical management roles in a variety of high-temperature industrial processes – syngas production, hydrogen, and gas-to-liquids. Before joining Rondo, Karim was a co-founder of a green hydrogen startup (H Cycle) where he was responsible for commercialization of the technology platform. Prior to H Cycle, he advised a number of energy startups in the Bay Area and was an investment director at growth equity firm, where he led investment origination and strategy in the firm’s low-carbon fuels vertical. Karim holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Texas A&M University and an MBA and MS in Energy & Resources from Stanford University.
Silvia Tanga
Head of North America
Silvia Tanga heads business development for North America at Rondo. Silvia has 15 years of experience in developing and financing climate infrastructure projects across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the USA. Prior to joining Rondo Energy, Silvia worked for the International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group. Silvia holds a master's degree in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University, specializing in energy policy, as well as a Master of Science from University College London and a Bachelor of Science from the London School of Economics.
Mark Meldrum
SVP, Head of Europe
Mark brings to Rondo over a decade of experience in commercializing energy solutions. Prior to joining Rondo, Mark was a Partner at Systemiq, a climate focused techno-economic advisory firm. While there Mark co-led the Clean Energy practice, helping clients to bring new solutions to market; Mark had differential focus on electrification and clean power solutions. Before Systemiq, Mark was Head of Corporate Strategy at National Grid, a $90 bn electric & gas utility in the U.K. and north-east U.S. During his time at National Grid, Mark directed work on investments in fast-charging EV networks, entry into utility-scale renewables via acquisition, partnerships in behind-the-meter solar + storage, and divestment of gas networks. Prior to that, Mark was a Manager at Bain & Company in the Energy and Industrials practices. Mark holds an MBA from INSEAD and a bachelor’s degree in systems design engineering from the University of Waterloo.
Paul Jones
Chief Legal Officer
Paul has worked in the intersection of energy, infrastructure, and technology for years. Prior to joining Rondo, Paul held a series of commercial and legal leadership roles for Bechtel, a leading global EPC company. At Bechtel, he worked closely with the investment and development subsidiary; innovation group; digital transformation initiative, and technology, intellectual property, and cybersecurity functions. Paul has served as general counsel or chief legal officer for an electric vehicle / autonomous vehicle company and a software company providing a platform for technical services to industrial customers. He has also advised start-up clients in various industries. Earlier in his career, he was a litigator and an international tax specialist. Paul holds degrees from New York University (LL.M.), the University of Notre Dame (J.D.), and Erskine College (B.A.).
Kim Gupta
Head of Global Supply Chain
Kim Gupta joins Rondo Energy from Enervenue, a non Lithium storage company where he served as the Chief Supplier Officer. Prior to that, he was the Vice President of Strategic Sourcing at Bloom Energy, a leading worldwide manufacturer of solid-oxide fuel cells for the distributed generation of electricity and hydrogen based in San Jose. Kim developed and expanded Bloom Energy’s global supply base, leading a team that transformed the company away from being supply-constrained. He also reduced material costs for Bloom’s fuel cell system by more than 50% and worked with a worldwide network of suppliers enabling $100M+ investments to feed Bloom’s supply requirements. Prior to Bloom, Kim spent two decades at Intel, where he managed a critical supply line for the company’s worldwide manufacturing sites. He holds a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from Stanford University and an MBA from Santa Clara University.
Caroline Jo
VP of Project Finance
Caroline Jo brings to Rondo Energy years of experience securing project financing for renewable energy projects. Prior to joining Rondo, she worked as a renewable energy project finance associate at McGuireWoods and DLA Piper. While there, she represented leading lenders, sponsors, project developers, and utilities in various tax equity financings, asset sales, and complex restructurings of solar, wind, battery and EV charging projects across the United States. Prior to that, Caroline worked at ENGIE and on the US C&I Project Finance team at SunEdison. Caroline earned her joint J.D./Master’s degree in environment and resources from Stanford University, a master’s degree in environmental policy from Cambridge University, and a bachelor’s degree in public and international affairs from Princeton University.