A Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology and a Chartered Engineer with a doctorate from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. Thirty year experience in the development and commercialization of advanced technology focused on the generation, conversion and delivery of energy. During a five year appointment with Rolls-Royce plc Lee implemented a successful fundamental change in the Distributed Generation Systems business unit. The business was transitioned from a bespoke designer of diesel generator solutions to a systems business based upon new technology building blocks. Energy was sold on a provision of power basis using an operational cost model. Lee joined Intelligent Energy in 2012 holding a variety of commercial roles including group Chief Sales Officer with responsibility for global commercial development. Late 2020 Lee joined NanoSUN and was responsible for the refocus of the business onto the successful Pioneer mobile hydrogen refuelling station. From January 2024 Lee has taken the post of CEO for Fuel Cell Systems. Working with Tom Chicken and the team and parent company Hydrasun, Lee is overseeing the expansion of the hydrogen systems business and the transition of the business to series manufacturing.

Liam graduated with my degree in Motorsport Engineering from Brighton University in 2013 and found himself a 6 month contract as an ADAS test Engineer at Thatcham Research. Liam stayed at Thatcham another 8 years, progressing to Senior Research Engineer – Active Safety and moving from undertaking ADAS testing to participating in Euro NCAP Working Groups and drafting future test procedures.

From there, Liam moved to his current role at Lotus Cars Ltd as Senior Technical Specialist – ADAS Test and Validation, where he is responsible for ADAS systems engineering and validation on Lotus sports car products.

Lilian Greenwood was appointed Minister for the Future of Roads at the Department for Transport on 9 July 2024.

She was re-elected as the MP for Nottingham South in July 2024, and has represented the constituency since May 2010.

Lilian was Shadow Secretary of State for Transport between 2015 and 2016, also operating as Shadow Rail Minister from 2011 to 2015. Lilian was appointed Opposition Deputy Chief Whip by Sir Keir Starmer in May 2021, occupying the role until 2023 when she was made Shadow Minister for Arts, Heritage, and Civil Society.

Lilian also chaired the Transport Select Committee from July 2017 to January 2020.

After more than a decade in the high hazard industry working on large scale counter-terror, fire and explosion testing, Lisa is now heavily involved in the hydrogen world working towards net zero and the energy transition. In her previous role at DNV Spadeadam, this included full scale dispersion testing, delivering hydrogen training courses, and now through her work at National Gas, working on deblending hydrogen from the gas network for the use in the transport industry. The FutureGrid Phase 2 Deblending for Transportation project involves investigating utilising the existing gas transmission network as a reliable and efficient supply of hydrogen that can be purified and compressed to fuel cell grade quality for use in all aspects of the transportation industry.  

Lucie Dobeer is Head of Automotive at Unipart, leading business development within the automotive sector with a strategic focus on electric vehicle (EV) battery logistics. She brings a strong foundation in sales and deep expertise in global distribution, account management, and multimodal solutions for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and suppliers, honed during her tenure at DB Schenker.

Energised by the industry’s shift to electrification, she is excited to bring Unipart’s unique EV lifecycle proposition to life, one that places world-class manufacturing capability at its core. Committed to delivering efficient, sustainable supply chain solutions, Lucie and her team build strong partnerships and deliver operational excellence, helping customers stay ahead in a rapidly changing market.

Dr Marc Henry is Head of Innovation at Unipart, where he leads partnerships, collaborations, and R&D programmes to futureproof the company’s manufacturing, design, and engineering capabilities.

He holds an MEng in Aerospace Engineering and a PhD in Aerospace Manufacturing, and has more than a decade of experience developing advanced technologies and innovation programmes across sectors including automotive, aerospace, space, defence, and infrastructure. He has directed major multi-million-pound programmes that accelerated new product and process development from early concept to volume production in record time.

With a strong background in R&D and government funding, Marc specialises in taking innovations from whiteboard sketch to industrial deployment. An active member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, he is passionate about cross-sector knowledge transfer, sustainability, and helping organisations prepare for rapid technological change on the journey to Net Zero.

Mark is a technical leader with 20 years’ experience in aerospace, EV automotive & infrastructure businesses. He joined 3ti as Chief Technical Officer (CTO) in 2021 to maintain 3ti’s position as the UK’s leading solar car park company through innovative, scalable, market-leading & globally applicable technologies that use solar, battery & EV charge points to optimise existing site grid connections.

Graduating in 2003 with a Masters in Electronic Engineering with Computing Science, Mark joined BAE Systems Defence Avionics, where he worked on numerous military & civil aerospace contracts.

Moving into the automotive industry in 2008, Mark joined start-up Protean Electric, introducing in-wheel electric motors to the then, emerging EV sector. He gained technical expertise across battery, charging & control systems, international mains standards, safety design & global homologation.

Today, Mark is heading up the exciting new Papilio3 V2X FastHub project, to demonstrate how electric vehicle batteries can be used to smooth out peaks in supply and demand to balance the UK's electricity grid. He remains passionately committed to sustainability and the environment, with customers at the heart of everything he does

Mark Preston is a renowned motorsport engineer, entrepreneur, and innovator whose career spans Formula 1, Formula E, and autonomous vehicle technology. Born in Geelong, Australia, Preston began his journey in engineering at Monash University and quickly made a mark in Australian motorsport before moving to the UK. He held pivotal roles at Arrows Grand Prix and McLaren Racing, where he pioneered the use of advanced analytics and design in F1.

Preston’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to co-found the Super Aguri F1 Team, famously building a Formula 1 operation in just 100 days. He later became a founding Team Principal in Formula E, guiding DS TECHEETAH to five world championships and establishing himself as the most successful leader in the series’ history.

Beyond racing, Preston has driven innovation in autonomous vehicles as co-founder of StreetDrone and as Director of Technology Integration at Oxa. Currently, he serves as Motorsport Director for Lola Cars, leading the brand’s return to global competition in partnership with Yamaha for Formula E. Preston also advises startups and academic programs at Oxford University, championing the transfer of motorsport methodologies to business and technology. His career embodies systematic innovation and the pursuit of sustainable, high-performance mobility

Mark Smith is Fleet Strategy & Carbon Net Zero Manager for London Fire Brigade, leading the decarbonisation of the organisations diverse fleet of around 350 specialist vehicles.

Mark has 30 years experience from fleet workshop and management roles to senior positions within large leasing businesses and public sector organisations. Key achievements to date include strategic planning and early deployment of alternatively fuelled and electric vehicles including specialist heavy vehicles along with large scale charging infrastructure installations and multi-vehicle V2G trials.

Professor Martin Freer joined the Faraday Institution as CEO in September 2024. He was previously Director of the Birmingham Energy Institute (BEI) at the University of Birmingham, a pan-discipline research centre. He also served as Director of the Energy Research Accelerator delivering a £200m programme to accelerate university research into regional, national and international impact linked to 1,400 researchers. Prior to that, Martin was Director of the Birmingham Centre for Nuclear Education and Research, which he established in 2010. Martin has co-led several policy commissions with the UK Government, including one that resulted in the creation of the Energy Innovation Zone in the West Midlands. Martin is a nuclear physicist. His main research area is the study of the structure of light nuclei using nuclear reactions. He received the Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Prize, Humboldt Foundation, in 2004 and the Rutherford Medal from the Institute of Physics in 2010.

Matt Silver is Innovation Lead for the £610 million Faraday Battery Challenge; working to transform the UK to be the go-to place for Electric Vehicle Batteries as part of the UK’s Net Zero target. His work cuts across our engagement with other countries and UK regions, our skills projects, and our business support programmes.

Matt has had roles in both the private and public sector, working with businesses to help them grow with business support, funding, and skills provision across the South West for Innovate UK, Cornwall Council and the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Enterprise Partnership.

After completing a Physics PhD in surface and interface science, Matt transitioned to the energy industry to focus on decarbonisation of energy systems where he has worked for 16 years. He began his career at E.ON working on research and development of distributed energy and smart technology products including heat pumps, micro-combined heat and power, PV & storage and energy management systems.

In 2018 Matt joined Cenex, an independent, not-for-profit mission driven consultancy specialising in low and zero emission transport and energy systems. At Cenex, Matt is a Principal Technical Specialist with responsibility for managing low-carbon vehicle and infrastructure innovation and demonstration projects. He has a focus on standards & regulations, grid integration and electrical systems for wireless charging, V2X, smart charging, energy management systems and other innovation associated with e-mobility infrastructure.

Mike Hawes became SMMT Chief Executive on 2 September 2013, having spent the majority of his career in the automotive industry.

Mike has more than 30 years’ experience in corporate and public affairs, initially in Government and then consultancy, before joining Toyota in the late 1990s.  He worked in both the UK and Europe for the company, managing both manufacturing and market issues before joining Bentley Motors in a global communications role.

Before joining the SMMT he managed both the Bentley role as well as corporate affairs support for Volkswagen AG, where he developed the broader European and global expertise needed for this challenging role.

His tenure at SMMT has seen him manage a succession of challenging issues affecting the industry, from Brexit to Covid, dieselgate to decarbonisation. He is also a Board Member of The Motor Ombudsman, Industry Forum and sits on the Department for Transport’s Motorist’s Forum. 

Mike Nakrani is the CEO of VEV, experts in designing and delivering scaled enterprise electric fleet solutions. VEV is 100% owned by Vitol, a world leader in energy. Mike is a seasoned entrepreneur & intrapreneur with 20+ years of experience in the mobility sector, Mike was previously Head of OEM & European SMART Mobility at a leading international car manufacturer and VP of Electrification, Hydrogen and Mobility at an Oil and Gas Major.