NavasotaEnergy

As a principal owner of Navasota Energy, Frank Giacalone guides the company's focus on the development of new power and energy assets as it seeks to acquire specific assets from the portfolio shifting that has driven the power industry in recent years.

With a focus on electric energy in both retail and wholesale markets, Giacalone's experience includes commercial and technical assignments.  His extensive background in the natural gas and electric power industries consists of executive management of geographically dispersed organizations, businesses and asset development, acquisitions and divestitures of power assets and companies, financial structuring, investment management and enterprise restructuring.

Prior to forming Navasota Energy and Montgomery Power Partners LP, Giacalone served as Vice President of Development and Asset Management for NRG Energy Inc. where he led expansion efforts in south and southwest wholesale power markets.   Giacalone had similar success as SVP and Chief Development Officer of CHI Energy, Inc. where, as executive team member, he saw the company move from bankruptcy to profitability and successful sale to Italian utility ENEL.  Giacalone has similar executive experience with companies such as JWP, Tenneco, and General Electric.

Dan Hudson is a principal owner of Navasota Energy, as well as Managing Member and President of Navasota Energy Partners LP and Navasota Holdings Texas Partners LP. He is responsible for M&A, capital formation/ management from private equity, third party debt and equity-raising. During 20 years of industry experience, Hudson has focused on wholesale electric and gas markets. His background includes asset acquisition and divestiture strategies, implementation and financing at Navigant Consulting, Duke Energy North America and NRG Energy. Hudson has successfully completed electric generation and gas transmission asset acquisitions totaling in excess of $10 billion including asset valuation, due diligence, purchase and sale agreement negotiations, and transition closing activities. His experience also includes financing more than $7 billion for power and gas assets via bond offerings, traditional project financing, fixed income trusts, construction loan revolvers and large corporate credit facilities.  Currently, Hudson serves as Chairman and Board Member for KGen Power Corporation in Houston, Texas.

Prior to forming Navasota Energy and Montgomery Power Partners LP,  Hudson served as Managing Director at Navigant, as well as Managing Director of Acquisitions and Divestitures for Duke where he led the company’s acquisition and divestiture program. Hudson’s industry achievements also include his role as VP of NRG Energy where, as executive team member, he was responsible for the company’s Energy Markets group which included acquisitions, electric trading, origination, acquisition implementation and integration, and financing support.

 

As Vice President of Construction, Kyle Woodruff oversees construction for the company, including the completion of both Phases I and II at Navasota Energy's Wharton and Odessa sites.  Woodruff also provides site evaluations, preliminary construction estimates, constructability reviews and other construction support for projects under development by Navasota.

Woodruff has over 25 years of engineering and construction experience in the electrical generation business with 15 years in the IPP business. Prior to joining Navasota, Woodruff was Vice President of Engineering and Construction for Panda Ethanol, Inc. where he was responsible for the engineering and construction of a 100 MMGY ethanol plant with a 250,000 lb/hr refuse boiler fueled by manure in Hereford, Texas. He also oversaw Panda’s merchant electrical power projects, including the 2300 MW Panda Gila River project and the 2300 MW Union Power Partners project. As Senior Project Director of Project Development, Woodruff developed the $1.1 billion, 2300 MW Union Power Partners project in Union County, Arkansas. Woodruff served as VP of Operations for Panda and as Project Engineering Manager on Panda’s Luannan Power Plant, a 100 MW coal fired cogeneration facility located in China. Woodruff was Senior Mechanical Engineer for CSW Energy and worked as Project Engineer for Sargent and Lundy performing capital improvement projects for gas and lignite fired power plants. He served as Start-up and Results Engineer for the Lower Colorado River Authority at their 1600 MW coal fired power plant in Texas.

Woodruff graduated from Texas Tech University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and is a Registered Professional Engineer.

 

As Vice President of Engineering and Operations, Dee Woodruff provides construction and engineering project management from conception to the completion of a project. This involves aiding clients with the selection of design professionals; coordinating clients, architects, and design professionals; overseeing estimating, value engineering and scheduling; reviewing construction documents for quality assurance; assisting in the contractor bid process and evaluation; and providing contractor process oversight.

Woodruff’s experience includes 25 years as a Professional Engineer in the Petro Chemical and Energy industry. Her project management experience, spanning from plant retrofits to construction of 1200+ MW plants, combines for more than $3 billion in construction projects.

Woodruff holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Texas A&I University.

 

As Vice President of Process Design and Technology at Navasota, Skinner provides engineering support to all existing operating, construction, and development projects.

Skinner has over thirty years of experience in the chemical and energy industries as an engineer, plant manager, and constructor. Before joining the Navasota companies, Skinner worked for multinational corporations such as Allied Chemical, Tenneco, Lonza AG, Enel Spa, and Jacobs Engineering. He has been involved in the operation, design, and construction of chemical, petrochemical, pulp and paper, and power plants in North and South America, Europe, and the Middle East.

Skinner received a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Clarkson College of Technology and a Master of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Syracuse University. He is also a Registered Professional Engineer.

 

Howard Duckworth is Vice President of Purchasing for Navasota Odessa and Navasota Wharton. He is responsible for all procurement functions.

Duckworth has over 28 years of engineering, commercial, finance, and supply chain operations experience, specializing in purchasing and contract management. Before joining the Navasota companies, Duckworth provided PB Power purchasing management support for a variety of projects. Prior to PB Power, he served as purchasing manager for materials and services at Sasol North America. In this capacity, Duckworth was responsible for developing and implementing corporate strategies to optimize plant and ex-plant purchasing for North America.

Duckworth received his Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Oklahoma State University and is a member of the National Association of Purchasing Managers.

 

Chief Financial Officer and Controller for Navasota Energy, Kurt Keller is responsible for the accounting and financial reporting, as well as the treasury functions of the Navasota companies. He also assists with M&A and capital raising activities.

Keller has more than 13 years of financial analysis experience with a focus in the energy industry. Before joining the Navasota companies, he worked for 7 years at Deloitte Financial Advisory Services where he performed corporate and asset valuations, provided litigation support on construction and energy projects, and assisted buyers and sellers in M&A transactions. Prior to Deloitte, Keller spent two years at Sonat Energy Services serving as project manager in business development and risk strategy for long-term gas supply contracts and structured commodity transactions. He has additional work experience as a sell-side securities analyst for an investment bank, and as a project accountant and treasury analyst for an engineering firm focused on the electric utility industry.

Keller received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Baylor University and graduated with a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Vanderbilt University. He also holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

 

As Vice President of Asset Management for Navasota Odessa and Navasota Wharton, Andy Morris is responsible for optimizing asset performance and new generation development. Morris has over 18 years of professional experience, 8 of which have been in the energy industry with a focus on wholesale electric and gas markets. His experience includes asset management, mergers and acquisitions, asset acquisitions and divestitures.

Prior to joining Navasota companies, Morris held management roles at Entergy Corporation, Duke Energy, and Navigant Consulting. His experience also includes engineering and environmental consulting.

Morris holds a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the University of Virginia and a Master’s in Business Administration from Emory University. He is a Registered Professional Engineer.

 

Jeff Maida is a member of the of Asset Management group for Navasota Odessa and Navasota Wharton.  In this position, Maida is responsible for optimizing asset performance and new generation development.

Maida has over 10 years of experience in the energy industry with a focus on the wholesale power markets.  His experience includes power plant development, asset acquisition and divestitures, and project management.

Before joining the Navasota companies, Maida managed asset acquisition and divestiture teams at Duke Energy North America.   Maida has successfully completed asset acquisitions and divestitures totaling $2.5 billion including, due diligence, transaction negotiations, and closing activities.  He has additional work experience in project development and asset management while with Coastal Power Company’s Asian business development group.

 

Chandler Morris is Vice President of Asset Management for Navasota Odessa and Navasota Wharton. In this position, Morris is responsible for optimizing asset performance and new generation development.

Morris has 10 years of experience in the energy industry with a focus on the wholesale natural gas and electric markets. His experience includes power plant development, asset acquisition and divestitures, and marketing and brokering energy derivatives.

Before joining the Navasota companies, Morris brokered natural gas basis and NYMEX options for Choice Energy. Prior to Choice, he managed asset acquisition and divestiture due diligence teams at Duke Energy North America and was a project developer of natural gas combined cycle and simple cycle power plants.

Morris received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Kansas and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Denver.