Francois Pienaar
Francois Pienaar
Francois Pienaar is a Chartered Electrical Engineer with a combination of electricity infrastructure and utility experience specialising in distribution and electricity access. He possessed over 26 years of electricity sector experience in roles ranging from managing large complex electricity infrastructure projects to electricity utility turnaround management.
Francois has been involved in electrification and urban electrical network renewal & urbanisation projects in Africa exceeding $170M connecting 195,000 plus customers to electricity. He was a Rural electrification project manager (2008 to 2014) responsible for the electrification of 201 villages and connecting 92.000 households in 7 regions in Tanzania as part of the MCA-T energy projects. Francois possesses Utility change management expertise working in management teams, managing inefficient and distressed electricity utilities in Georgia, Kosovo, and Liberia. He was a shareholder in off-grid solar project development (PCL) and off-grid Solar Home System (RISE) company in Tanzania. He also worked in ESB Networks, the electricity distribution asset owner in Ireland as a project manager to support the LV Network Readiness Project. The project aims to futurise the electricity distribution networks in Ireland through reactive and proactive investment strategies that will allow the networks and operations to accept large scale distributed renewable energy generation, electric vehicle charging, and electric heating. Francois has a combination of African power sector experience and the experience of modern utilities in mature power sectors going through a transition as part of their decarbonised roadmap. He holds a B.Eng., Electrical Engineering from the University of Pretoria/Universiteit van Pretoria and has undertaken several leadership programmes, particularly the Oxford Executive Leadership Programme at the Said Business School, University of Oxford. [www.linkedin.com/in/francois-pienaar] Francois Pienaar is a Chartered Electrical Engineer with a combination of electricity infrastructure and utility experience specialising in distribution and electricity access. He possessed over 26 years of electricity sector experience in roles ranging from managing large complex electricity infrastructure projects to electricity utility turnaround management. Francois has been involved in electrification and urban electrical network renewal & urbanisation projects in Africa exceeding $170M connecting 195,000 plus customers to electricity. He was a Rural electrification project manager (2008 to 2014) responsible for the electrification of 201 villages and connecting 92.000 households in 7 regions in Tanzania as part of the MCA-T energy projects. Francois possesses Utility change management expertise working in management teams, managing inefficient and distressed electricity utilities in Georgia, Kosovo, and Liberia. He was a shareholder in off-grid solar project development (PCL) and off-grid Solar Home System (RISE) company in Tanzania. He also worked in ESB Networks, the electricity distribution asset owner in Ireland as a project manager to support the LV Network Readiness Project. The project aims to futurise the electricity distribution networks in Ireland through reactive and proactive investment strategies that will allow the networks and operations to accept large scale distributed renewable energy generation, electric vehicle charging, and electric heating. Francois has a combination of African power sector experience and the experience of modern utilities in mature power sectors going through a transition as part of their decarbonised roadmap. He holds a B.Eng., Electrical Engineering from the University of Pretoria/Universiteit van Pretoria and has undertaken several leadership programmes, particularly the Oxford Executive Leadership Programme at the Said Business School, University of Oxford. 