Global Energy Experts James P. McGinnis and Lord John Browne Join CODA's Board of Directors

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Jan. 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- CODA Holdings, a California-based leading developer of advanced Lithium-ion power battery systems and all-electric vehicles, today announced that James P. McGinnis and Lord John Browne have joined the company's Board of Directors.  Mr. McGinnis and Lord Browne serve as Managing Directors of Harbinger Capital Partners and Riverstone Holdings LLC, respectively, which co-led CODA's $76 million Series D initial closing.

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Mr. McGinnis is a Managing Director of Harbinger Capital Partners where he focuses on investments in the energy, power and utility industries. Prior to joining Harbinger, Mr. McGinnis played a leadership role in advising on and executing the energy and infrastructure strategies for a number of financial services firms. He was a Managing Director in the Global Power and Utility Group of Morgan Stanley and a Vice President in the Energy and Power Group of Goldman Sachs & Co. Mr. McGinnis currently serves on the Board of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change and is a Trustee of Charity: Water. He received an A.B. in Government from Harvard College and a M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School.

Lord Browne is a Partner and Managing Director of Riverstone Holdings LLC. In 2010, Lord Browne was appointed the U.K. Government's Lead Non-Executive Board member, a position charged with improving efficiency and injecting business ethos into government. From 1966 to 2007, he served in a variety of executive and management-level positions at British Petroleum (BP), and was eventually appointed Chief Executive in July 1995. Under Browne, BP's market capitalization increased five-fold and the company spearheaded the launch of a comprehensive program dubbed "Beyond Petroleum" which sought to identify and implement new ways to make BP's operations more sustainable. Lord Browne was knighted in 1998 and made a life peer in 2001.

"The appointment of these world-class executives to CODA's Board will provide the company with invaluable expertise in the global energy markets," said Mac Heller, Executive Chairman, CODA Holdings. "The breadth of their global networks and the depth of their knowledge will help accelerate the growth of our automotive and power storage battery business in the U.S. and abroad."

A complete list of the membership of CODA's Board of Directors is available on codaautomotive.com.

About CODA Holdings: Headquartered in Santa Monica, Calif., CODA Holdings is working to reduce dependence on oil and is leading the way to a cleaner energy future through multi-use advanced battery systems for electric cars and a range of utility applications. CODA is working in a smart, interdependent way with leading global technology and manufacturing companies to quickly and efficiently bring electric power battery technology to market. Through its battery system joint venture with Lishen Power Battery of Tianjin, China, whose principal shareholder is CNOOC (China National Offshore Oil Company), CODA is a large-scale producer of power battery systems for transportation and utility applications. Upon completion of current build-out of production capacity, it will be producing power battery systems totaling more than 1.4 billion amp hours (Ah) of energy storage (4.4 million kilowatt hours). With the completion of the proposed Ohio ATVM plant, its total JV capacity is slated to reach two billion Ah (6.3 million kWh) of energy storage. The CODA Sedan is a four-door, five-passenger 100% electric vehicle with industry-leading technology that is designed to meet American drivers' daily transportation needs without using an ounce of gasoline.

About Harbinger Capital Partners: Harbinger Capital Partners was founded in 2001. Harbinger is led by Philip A. Falcone, Chief Executive and Chief Investment Officer, who has more than 20 years of investment experience across an array of market cycles.

About Riverstone Holdings LLC: Riverstone Holdings LLC, an energy and power-focused private equity firm founded in 2000, has approximately $17 billion under management across six investment funds, including the world's largest renewable energy fund. Riverstone conducts buyout and growth capital investments in the midstream, exploration & production, oilfield services, power and renewable sectors of the energy industry. With offices in New York, London and Houston, the firm has committed approximately $15.6 billion to 75 investments in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.

SOURCE CODA Holdings