Douglas Kieta
Chairman of the Board
Doug Kieta has served as a Director since March 2005. He has more than 45 years of profit center and project operations experience in the domestic and international power industries. Mr. Kieta is the President of Century West Projects, Inc., a consulting firm that provides project management services to the power industry. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of Robins & Morton, an engineering and construction firm located in Birmingham, Alabama. Mr. Kieta was formerly Vice President – Power for BE&K, Inc., an international engineering and construction firm headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. Mr. Kieta also served as Senior Vice President of Construction and Engineering at Calpine Corporation, a major North American power company providing electricity to customers and communities in 21 states and three Canadian provinces. Prior to joining Calpine, Mr. Kieta served for over 10 years as President & CEO of Century Contractors West, Inc. He is a member of the National Academy of Construction. Mr. Kieta has a BS degree in Civil Engineering from Clarkson University and a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering from Cornell University.
Maria Gray
Director
Maria Gray has served as an advisor to our Board since 2021 and as a Director since June 2022. Ms. Gray served as a Senior Refining Engineer at Marathon Petroleum Company, an American petroleum refining, marketing, and transportation company headquartered in Findlay, Ohio. From 2012 to 2021, Ms. Gray served in several capacities including as a Senior Health, Safety, and Environmental Professional and as a Project Process Engineering Lead, at Marathon Petroleum Company. Ms. Gray also served in various engineering and supervisory capacities from 2001 to 2012 for Motiva Enterprises LLC, then a joint venture between Shell Oil Company and Saudi Refining Inc, a subsidiary of Saudi Aramco, that operates North America’s largest refinery in Port Arthur, Texas, producing and distributing fuels and specialty chemicals. Ms. Gray also served as a Process Engineer for Union Carbide Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dow Chemical Company, that produces specialty chemicals and polymers. Ms. Gray has a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering, Minor in Business and Minor in Architecture from Tulane University.
Mike Kandris
Director and Interim Chief Operating Officer
Mike Kandris, named Interim Chief Operating Officer, has served the company for over 15 years. Originally an independent contractor with a focus on Alto Ingredients operations, Mr. Kandris became a member of the company’s board of directors in 2008, began serving as Chief Operating Officer in 2013, and served as President and Chief Operating Officer from 2020 until retiring from those roles in 2023. He has over 40 years of general management experience in the transportation and logistics industry in executive management at Ruan Transportation Management Systems (RTMS). Additionally, Mr. Kandris served on the Executive Committee of the American Trucking Association and as a board member for the National Tank Truck Organization. Mr. Kandris has a B.S. degree in Business from California State University, Hayward.
Gilbert Nathan
Director
Gilbert Nathan has served as an Advisor to the Board since November 2015 and as a director since November 2019. Mr. Nathan is the Managing Member of Jackson Square Advisors LLC, and is the Chief Executive Officer of Keycon Power Holdings, LLC. Mr. Nathan serves on the Board of Directors of two additional publicly traded companies, Ready Capital Corporation and Magnachip Semiconductor Corporation. He previously served on the Boards of Directors of Owens Realty Mortgage, Inc. and Emergent Capital, Inc., and as a liquidating trust board member of Hercules Offshore Liquidating Trust. Mr. Nathan was formerly a Senior Analyst with Candlewood Investment Group, an investment firm with significant debt and equity investments in the ethanol industry. Prior to joining Candlewood, Mr. Nathan served as Principal at Restoration Capital Management for 10 years. Mr. Nathan has a B.S. degree in Management, Major in Finance from the A. B. Freeman School of Business at Tulane University.
Dianne Nury
Director
Dianne Nury has served as an Advisor to our Board since August 2018 and as a Director since November 2019. Ms. Nury is President and Chief Executive Officer of Vie-Del Company. Ms. Nury serves on the Board of Directors of the Wine Institute and is a former Chairman of the Board. Ms. Nury is a member of the Juice Products Association, and formerly served as Chairman of its Board of Directors. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Agricultural Foundation for California State University at Fresno and serves as the Vice Chairman of the Viticulture and Enology Industry Advisory Board. Ms. Nury previously served on the USDA Fruit and Vegetable Industry Advisory Committee. Ms. Nury is a Board Member of the Foundation for Clovis Schools, Clovis, California, and previously served on the Board of Trustees of the Saint Agnes Medical Center, Fresno, California. Ms. Nury has a BS degree in Business from California State University at Fresno.