Tom was appointed as the first Chief Executive of the Carbon Trust in 2001. Since then, he has grown the company to become a world leader in advising businesses, governments and the public sector on carbon emissions reduction and the development of low carbon technologies, markets and businesses. Since 2001 the Carbon Trust has helped thousands of businesses cut over £5.5 billion from their energy bills and carbon emissions by over 60 million tonnes. It invests venture capital, manages collaborative innovation programmes and has spun out successful businesses in carbon footprinting, renewable energy and energy efficiency deployment. Tom has placed the Carbon Trust at the heart of low carbon business, helping identify and capture the commercial opportunities of a sustainable, low carbon World. In recent years, he has taken the company's unique capability to international markets including China, Korea, the US and Brazil, extending its mission to accelerate the move to a low carbon economy. He chairs the private equity backed Partnerships for Renewables and is a member of the UK Energy Research Partnership and the Offshore Wind Cost Reduction Task Force.
A chartered engineer, Tom began his career with Shell, working for 16 years in commercial and operations roles including four years as General Manager of Pizo Shell - a subsidiary in Gabon, Africa. He moved into management consultancy with McKinsey and then as a Principal with the Global Energy Practice of A.T. Kearney before joining the Carbon Trust. Tom gained a first class honours degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Southampton in 1981 and completed an MBA, with distinction, at INSEAD, in 1988.