Board of Directors
Peter Mills
Mr. Mills is the co-founder of @Ventures, which was formed in 1995. Now investing the firm's 5th fund, Peter operates out of Menlo Park, CA.Mr. Mills has played a key role in a number of successful investments for @Ventures, including GeoCities (Nasdaq: GCTY then acquired by Yahoo), Vicinity (Nasdaq: VCNT then acquired by Microsoft), and Avamar Technologies (acquired by EMC). He currently holds board or observer seats with 212 Resources, Advent Solar, Cobalt Biofuels, and Propel Biofuels.
Prior to @Ventures, Mr. Mills had extensive operating and manufacturing experience across a wide spectrum of industries. Mr. Mills received his BS in Communications from Ithaca College and an MBA in Marketing from the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University.
Steve Swanson – North Shore Energy
Steve Swanson is the President and Managing Member for North Shore Energy, LLC, (NSE) a Denver based private equity firm investing in oil and gas exploration and production and water as a natural resource. Steve directs investment decisions for NSE. Steve has over 30 years of experience in both investment banking and private equity. He has managed numerous successful energy related companies for Yorktown Energy Partners, one of the largest private equity investment companies in the world. Steve currently serves as a Board Member for 212 Resources, Altela, and New Sky Energy. Steve graduated from the University of Michigan with an undergraduate degree in Economics and Philosophy and the University of Denver with a J.D. and MBA.
Kristen Kies - North Shore Energy
Kristen Kies is the Chief Financial Officer for North Shore Energy, LLC, (NSE) a Denver based private equity firm investing in oil and gas and exploration and production and water as a natural resource. In her role at NSE, Kristen sources, evaluates, and manages investments. Kristen currently serves as a Board Member for 212 Resources, Altela and New Sky Energy. She also manages the financial and treasury functions at NSE. Kristen has extensive knowledge and experience in the areas of accounting, auditing and taxation. Kristen specializes in transaction support, new company formation, project management, application of new and emerging technical accounting concepts, accounting for debt and equity transactions, and consolidation accounting. She maintains working knowledge of premium tax credits and new markets tax credits. Kristen received a MS in Taxation, a BBA in Accounting, and Minor in Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
David Lincoln – Element Partners
David has been an active investor in venture capital for over 18 years and has over 23 years of experience investing in energy and technology companies. David’s areas of investment focus include renewable and alternative energy technologies, energy storage, advanced materials, resource optimization, and the upstream energy sector.
Prior to forming Element, David was a co-founder and Managing Director of EnerTech Capital Partners, an energy technology venture firm formed in 1996. Under his leadership, EnerTech successfully managed over $290 million in two funds specifically focused on energy, communications, and clean technologies. David also founded and served as President and CEO of Deven Resources, Inc., a private equity firm dedicated to the acquisition and development of energy properties. From 1984 to 1991, David was a partner with CMS Companies, a Philadelphia-based private equity and financial services firm. David began his career at UGI Corporation, a diversified energy and utility holding company.
David holds a BA with honors in Geology from Colgate University and an MS in Energy Management and Policy from the University of Pennsylvania.
Nitin Gupta
Nitin is a Senior Associate at Element Partners, and has experience in private equity and investment banking. Prior to Element, Nitin worked as an Analyst at Lazard Freres, where he focused on restructuring and mergers & acquisitions of companies within the energy, telecommunications, and automotive industries. Prior to joining Lazard, he worked as a technology consultant at Price Waterhouse Coopers. Nitin also spent time at Xerox PARC and Credit Suisse. Nitin holds an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering, with a minor in Computer Science, from Cornell University.
Stephen E. Hester
Stephen currently serves as 212’s President and Chief Executive Officer. Steve spent the first 30 years of his career in the energy service and equipment business. Prior to joining 212 in May of 2010 Mr. Hester served as Director, Technology Portfolio Solutions for Baker Hughes Inc., of Houston, TX. In this capacity Mr. Hester was responsible for leading development of corporate level technology (cross product line) solutions for market applications including Shale Gas, Water Management, HPHT, Deep Water, Geothermal and other strategic interests.
A 30-year veteran of the energy services and equipment industry Mr. Hester has led several businesses including the $200M Production Quest Intelligent Production Systems group within Baker Hughes. His combination of skills and experiences in growing oil services business, his strong commercial and financial skills, his understanding the water management and shale gas issues, and his experience in managing a technology start-up in the oilfield (Luna Energy) provide a solid foundation to build our business.
Operationally, Steve has led a $200M new technology business unit with Baker Hughes delivering over 30% in profits. He also led a $120M service business delivering over 20% in profits. He has entrepreneurial experience and skills that support new product development and commercialization and has driven P&Ls and balance sheets with a focus on CAPEX, OP EX and EBITDA growth.
