Executive Management

Dr. Benedek has held the role of CEO since founding Anaergiain 2007. He received his engineering degree (chemical) from McGill University in Montreal, Québec in 1966. By 1970, he had obtained a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington with a focus on wastewater treatment. Dr. Benedek then accepted a professorship at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario where he taught and conducted research to find ways of improving water quality. In 1980, Dr. Benedek founded ZENON with the purpose of developing cost effective membrane technologies for recycling wastewater. Under his leadership, ZENON invented, developed and commercialized many of the key membrane technologies used for water and wastewater treatment and became a global leader in this field. Dr. Benedek continued to be the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ZENON until its June 2006 sale to General Electric Company for $790 million. At the time of the sale, the company employed over 1,500 people. After the sale of ZENON, Dr. Benedek worked at the Scripps Institute of Technology (“Scripps”) in San Diego, California where he became interested in helping to find solutions to climate change. In furtherance of this new interest, he left Scripps and founded Anaergia. Dr. Benedek has received many awards, including honorary doctorates from universities and awards for entrepreneurship and for his contributions toward solving global environmental problems. In 2008, he was chosen as the inaugural recipient of the Lee Kwan Yew Prize, a prestigious award for contributions to solving water problems.

Dr. Scherson is Anaergia’s Chief Operating Officer, a position he’s held since 2021. Dr. Scherson joined Anaergia in 2014 as the Managing Director for the Western United States and managed applications and process engineering globally, developing technical tools, modeling and standards while supporting global projects in concept, financial modeling and process design. As Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Scherson is responsible for overseeing all business line sales, project development, contracting and negotiation, project execution and operations, and project financing. He also spearheads Anaergia’s market outreach and regulatory engagement strategy in California. Dr. Scherson holds a Ph.D. and a Master’s of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University, where he was also a Postdoctoral Scholar in Civil and Environmental Engineering. He also holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science from the University of California, Berkeley. He is a licensed Professional Civil Engineer andholds a Contractors A licence in California. Dr. Scherson was listed as a rising star in the energy sector in Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2012.

Mr. Kaissi is Anaergia’s Chief Financial Officer, a position he’s held since 2019. Mr. Kaissi joined Anaergia in 2010 and has over 25 years’ experience in the water and waste industries. He started his career with the engineering and project management of large-scale infrastructure projects, and has held senior operations, strategy, corporate development, M&A, and finance positions at ZENON and General Electric Company. Mr. Kaissi has a unique expertise in integrating operations, finance and strategy. He is a past board member of Anaergia and currently serves on the Board of Directors of several of Anaergia’s subsidiaries. Mr. Kaissi has a Bachelor of Engineering degree from the American University of Beirut and holds a Master’s of Business Administration from McGill University.

Mr. Erickson is the General Counsel of the Company, a position he has held since 2018. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Erickson delivered strategic guidance and legal solutions for private-equity-controlled portfolio companies engaged in the development of critical water, energy and telecommunications infrastructure in the U.S. and abroad for government and multinational clients. He was most recently the Vice President, General Counsel of FDH Velocitel, Inc. Mr. Erickson has over 24 years of legal and project management experience and is a Certified Compliance and Ethics Professional – International (CCEP-I). He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Maine School of Law.