DIRECTORS
Michael Frayne – Executive Chairman (Age: 42)
Michael Frayne has a Bachelor of Commerce Degree majoring in accounting and finance, a Bachelor of Science Degree majoring in Geology and a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment from the Securities Institute of Australia. He is Chartered Accountant and a member of the Australian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Mr Frayne was previously employed at major international accounting firm, Ernst & Young, and consulted to a number of resource and commodity companies. He then worked directly in the resource industry including Great Central Mines Ltd (now part of Newmont Ltd). He then joined the corporate team of Minara Resources Ltd (formerly Anaconda Nickel Ltd), the majority owner of the Murrin Murrin Nickel Cobalt Project in Western Australia whose major investors were Anglo American Group and Glencore International.
Since 2002, Michael has provided corporate management and advice to the resource, commodity and energy sectors, successfully listing several companies with projects in Australia, Southern Africa, Asia, North and South America, onto AIM and the Australian Stock Exchange. Most recently Michael founded and was the joint managing director of Asia Energy plc. Michael is one of the founders of the Company, overseeing the company strategy, performing day-to-day executive duties and building the senior management team.
Peter Bayliss – Managing Director (Age: 44)
Peter Bayliss has nearly 20 years experience in the plantation sector. He holds Bachelor of Science from the University of London and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Bath. He joined New Britain Palm Oil Development Ltd (then a subsidiary of Harrisons & Crosfield Plc) in Papua New Guinea in 1988 where he was employed on various plantations growing oil palms. During his time at New Britain Palm Oil Development Ltd, Peter was involved in all aspects of business operations. His last position held was as project manager responsible for the development of 9,000 hectares of oil palm and the establishment of a cattle stud and feedlot.
In 1996, he was recruited by London Sumatra Singapore Ltd and seconded to PT PP London Sumatra Indonesia where he was directly responsible for the implementation in Indonesia of a 10 year program to plant 187,000 hectares of oil palm and 26,000 hectares of rubber throughout Indonesia. Prior to his appointment with the Company, Peterwas a key member of the senior management team with PTAgro Muko (a subsidiary of the SIPEF NV group) and responsible for all aspects of agricultural policy and quality control on 20,000 hectares of oil palm and rubber development in Sumatra.
Geoffrey Brown – Executive Plantations Director (Age : 69)
Geoffrey Brown has over 38 years experience in the plantation sector. He joined Harrisons & Crosfield plc in Malaysia in 1962 where he was employed on various plantations growing oil palm and rubber. He moved to Indonesia in 1976 and was made responsible for Harrisons & Crosfield’s interests in that country. He was appointed executive Chairman of London Sumatra Indonesia in 1982 and remained Managing Director of this large Indonesian plantation company until 1998. In 1990, he was appointed an executive director of Harrisons & Crosfield Plc, responsible for the plantation division. Harrisons & Crosfield Plc owned and managed plantations of rubber, oil palms, cocoa, coffee and tea in Indonesia, and oil palm and coffee in Papua New Guinea. He remained an executive director of Harrisons & Crosfield Plc until the company divested itself of its plantation interest in 1994. In 1999 and 2000, he co-ordinated the expansion of oil palm plantations belonging to the Musim Mas Group in Indonesia and has since then been a consultant specialising in plantation management.
Joseph Jaoudi – Non-Executive Director (Age :72)
Joseph Jaoudi holds two degrees, a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautics Major Electronics and a Masters Degree in System Engineering and Business Administration from the University of California. Joseph has over 46 years of experience in engineering and business ventures. Heworked for seven years on the ground support system for the Apollo project and three years on the attitude control unit of the Intelstat 5 Communication Satellite. During the early 1980’s with the support of the California Energy Commission, he established a Biomass Alternate Energy Plant in the San Joaquin Valley. The project was sold and is presently operating as a Cogeneration Power Plant. He served 14 years as a Director of First National Bank of North County, two years of which were as Chairman. For the last four years (and ongoing) he has served as an Advisory Board Member of First Pacific Bank in San Diego County. Between 1970 and 1990, beside the Alternate Energy Project, he served as President and CEO of many family and personal trading companies in Liberia, West Africa that owned and operated wholesale facilities at the Freeport of Monrovia, a chain of supermarkets around Liberia, and a 35,000 acre oil palm concession in Grand Bassa County Liberia (in the area which is now the subject of the Palm Bay Investment Agreement).
Anthony Samaha – Non-Executive Director (Age : 42)
Anthony Samaha holds Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Economics degrees. He is an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Australia and an Associate of the Securities Institute of Australia. Anthony has over 15 years’ experience in providing accounting and corporate advice in a diverse range of industry sectors including resource development. He has previously held senior advisory positions in the corporate finance divisions of internationally affiliated accounting firms and has extensive experience in valuations, independent expert’s reports, due diligence, capital raisings and mergers and acquisitions. He is a non-executive director of AIM quoted Altona Energy Plc.