Virent Announces New Leadership and Board Appointments

MADISON, Wis., July 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Virent Energy Systems, Inc. announced today that Susan Healy has been named Chief Financial Officer and Shell executive, David Jacober, has been elected to the company's Board of Directors.

Ms. Healy was most recently Senior Vice President and CFO at Lands' End, the international apparel retailer.  She also served as CFO of Goldman Sachs's power asset business, helping to grow its asset portfolio more than six-fold over three years.  With over 18 years of finance experience, including positions in corporate treasury and investment banking at Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers, Ms. Healy has raised over $8 billion and executed $25 billion of M&A transactions across a variety of industries.  She earned a BS in Business Administration from California State Polytechnic University and a JD from Harvard University.

Ms. Healy will have responsibility for the company's financial, accounting, and information technology operations.  She will report to Lee Edwards, President and CEO.

Virent's new Board Member, David Jacober, is the Business Opportunity Manager – Americas Team Lead at Shell Downstream, Inc., where he leads the development and implementation of large, strategic capital projects for process safety, growth, and energy conservation across Shell's global Downstream Manufacturing assets.  Mr. Jacober has over 30 years of refining experience with Shell Oil Company and holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Illinois.

"Virent is fortunate to add two knowledgeable and experienced leaders in their respective fields.  Susan Healy brings a strong track record in financial leadership including capital-raising, treasury and deal making, to help build our financial foundation essential for the successful commercialization of Virent's innovative BioForming® technology platform," said Lee Edwards, Virent's President and CEO.  "With decades of petroleum refining and distribution expertise, David Jacober adds a valuable perspective of large capital projects to Virent's Board.  His knowledge of global refining, chemicals and transportation fuels will be indispensable to the successful market introduction of Virent's fungible renewable hydrocarbon products."

About Virent Energy Systems

Virent's BioForming process is a leading technology for the production of sustainable advanced biofuels, including biogasoline, diesel, and jet fuel, and many chemicals.  The process has won numerous technology and innovation awards including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge and the World Economic Forum's Technology Pioneer awards. Virent has 80 employees and a state of the art catalytic biorefining development facility located in Madison, Wisconsin.  Virent counts premier, global companies Cargill, Shell, and Honda, among its investors.  The BioForming technology is based on the patented Aqueous Phase Reforming process.  To learn more, visit: www.virent.com.

Notes to Editors:

Recent Virent press releases are available at:

www.virent.com/News/press_releases.html

Virent press kit materials and images are available at:

www.virent.com/News/mediakits.html

SOURCE Virent Energy Systems, Inc.