ClearSign Technologies Corporation Announces Hire of Tina Oby Unachukwu as Director of Customer Relationships and Business Development

TULSA, Okla., Aug. 1, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ClearSign Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: CLIR) ("ClearSign" or the "Company"), an emerging leader in industrial combustion and sensing technologies that improve energy, operational efficiency and safety while dramatically reducing emissions, announces the hire of seasoned industry executive Ms. Tina Oby Unachukwu as Director of Customer Relationships and Business Development.   

"We are delighted to have Tina join our team, adding her leadership and expertise to enhance our sales, marketing and business development operations at this pivotal time for ClearSign," said Jim Deller, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of ClearSign. "As we complete and start up more significant customer orders for both of our major product lines, which help establish additional credible operating commercial references, we have also sought to enhance our strategic sales and marketing operations to expand the adoption of our products and future sales pipeline. After an extensive search, we are very pleased to announce that in hiring Tina we have been able to find and attract an outstanding addition to ClearSign leadership. Tina brings well proven and diverse skills in these areas, including a stellar record of expanding business footprints and growing sales.  That combined with her entrepreneurial drive makes her an exciting addition to our team here at ClearSign and I look forward to working with her at this critical phase of our commercial development," concluded Dr. Deller. 

Ms. Unachukwu brings a background in sales, operations and business development with over 20 years' experience capitalizing on business growth opportunities across a broad range of sectors.  Ms. Unachukwu joins the Company from Baker Hughes where she held various roles since 2014, most recently Global Product Management Director where she managed $1.25B in portfolio revenue, the majority from the U.S Market.  In 2022 under her tenure, she attained over $500mm in new business.  From 2018-2021 Ms. Unachukwu held the role of Region Product Line Operations Director and achieved over $300mm portfolio business growth by successfully expanding the region growth from six to 11 countries.  Prior to that she was a Business Line Manager for West Africa and grew the product line exponentially in the region, received wins rates of over 75% and grew the portfolio from $100mm to $300mm.  From 2010-2014 Ms. Unachukwu was at GE/Improchem PTY and held the roles of Sales Manager and Business Development Manager of Upstream and Downstream.  Additionally, Ms. Unachukwu held the role of accounts manager at Nalco Energy Services.  She holds a B.A. and a M. Tech from The Federal University of Oweri and an MBA from Enugu University Business School.     

In connection with Ms. Unachukwu's hire, on July 31, 2023, the Company, granted non-qualified stock options to purchase an aggregate of 150,000 shares of its common stock. The options were approved by the compensation committee of the Company's board of directors and were granted as a material inducement to Ms. Unachukwu's entering into employment with the Company in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).The options have an exercise price of $1.31 per share, which is equal to the closing price of the Company's common stock on the July 31, 2023. The options will vest in three equal installments, with one third of the options vesting on the grant date, and each remaining third of the options will vest on the second and third anniversaries of the grant date, respectively, subject to Ms. Unachukwu's continued employment with ClearSign on such vesting dates.

About ClearSign Technologies Corporation

ClearSign Technologies Corporation designs and develops products and technologies for the purpose of improving key performance characteristics of industrial and commercial systems, including operational performance, energy efficiency, emission reduction, safety and overall cost-effectiveness. Our patented technologies, embedded in established OEM products as ClearSign Core™ and ClearSign Eye™ and other sensing configurations, enhance the performance of combustion systems and fuel safety systems in a broad range of markets, including the energy (upstream oil production and down-stream refining), commercial/industrial boiler, chemical, petrochemical, transport and power industries. For more information, please visit www.clearsign.com.

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All statements in this press release that are not based on historical fact are "forward-looking statements." You can find many (but not all) of these statements by looking for words such as "approximates," "believes," "hopes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "projects," "intends," "plans," "would," "should," "could," "may," "will" or other similar expressions. While management has based any forward-looking statements included in this press release on its current expectations on the Company's strategy, plans, intentions, performance, or future occurrences or results, the information on which such expectations were based may change. These forward-looking statements rely on a number of assumptions concerning future events and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside of our control, that could cause actual results to materially differ from such statements. Such risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to general business and economic conditions, the performance of management and our employees, our ability to obtain financing, competition, whether our technology will be accepted and adopted and other factors identified in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available at www.sec.gov and other factors that are detailed in our periodic and current reports available for review at www.sec.gov. Furthermore, we operate in a competitive environment where new and unanticipated risks may arise. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. We disclaim any intention to, and, except as may be required by law, undertake no obligation to, update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that subsequently occur or of which we hereafter become aware.

SOURCE ClearSign Technologies Corporation