Management team

Neal Barclay was appointed as Chief Executive in January 2018.

Neal joined Meridian in 2008 as their Chief Financial Officer. He then moved into the position of General Manager Markets and Production where he was responsible for generation asset management and wholesale trading. Neal held this position until April 2016 when he was appointed General Manager Retail, responsible for Meridian and Powershop New Zealand’s customer sales, service and operations.

Before joining Meridian, Neal held a number of general manager and finance roles during a 13-year career with Telecom New Zealand Limited. Neal has an accounting background and is a qualified chartered accountant.

Mike Roan was appointed Chief Financial Officer in April 2019. Mike and his team are responsible for finance, strategy and IT functions at Meridian Energy. Before this appointment, Mike was General Manager of Wholesale, responsible for all wholesale market activities. He holds a Masters in Finance.

Mike originally joined Meridian in 2006 as a Strategy Analyst before moving into the wholesale side of the business in 2009 as Wholesale Markets Manager. Before joining Meridian, Mike was domiciled in the United States where he worked in a number of energy trading roles. He is a kiwi who, prior to the US, spent time working within the New Zealand electricity sector and banking.

Tania joined Meridian in June 2019 as Chief People Officer. She has strong experience in the electricity sector after spending six years as a member of Contact Energy’s Leadership Team – two years in the role of Chief People Officer and four years as General Manager Health, Safety & Environment.

As well as previously holding a number of senior Human Resources positions at Contact, Tania has a breadth of experience to share from running her own consulting business, leading people-related projects in the energy, science and research, manufacturing, retail, arts, financial services, non-profit and government sectors. Tania is a graduate of Victoria University and started her career in the NZ Air Force before moving into the private sector.

Jason Stein joined Meridian in 2008 and is General Manager of the Office of the Chief Executive. As General Counsel and Company Secretary, Jason’s team are responsible for the company’s legal services and managing Meridian’s governance, regulatory and government relations processes. He has accountability in sustainability and communications, and for Dam Safety Intelligence Limited, a Meridian subsidiary responsible for monitoring many of New Zealand’s dams.

Jason has experience in governance roles in a number of former and current Meridian subsidiaries, including as the Meridian parent representative and as a director. Jason has until recently chaired Meridian's Diversity and Inclusion Committee.

Nic Kennedy was appointed Chief Executive of Flux Federation in June 2019.

Flux is a subsidiary of Meridian Energy. They imagine, design and build software, brands and experiences for utility companies and their customers all around the world. Before her appointment, Nic held the position of Chair of the Flux Board.

Prior to Flux, Nic was the Chief Innovation & Ventures Officer at PwC, leading teams building global technology and business solutions.

She has been the Chief Delivery Officer on the Executive team at Vend, where she led the product and engineering teams. In this role she oversaw a strong growth period while building a top-notch team and a product that is now used in 145 countries around the world.

Nic is also on the Board of The Mind Lab and Tech Futures Lab, the award-winning postgraduate facility for contemporary education for executives and educators.

Guy Waipara (Rongowhakaata) was appointed to General Manager of Generation and Natural Resources in November 2017. Prior to this he was General Manager of Markets and Production from April 2016, and held the role of General Manager of External Relations from August 2010. Guy has held roles at Meridian in offshore business development and setting company strategy. He has over 25 years' experience in the electricity sector and previously worked at Transpower New Zealand Limited in roles responsible for transmission planning and network development.

Guy is responsible for generation asset management and operations in New Zealand and Australia. In New Zealand this generation asset portfolio includes seven hydro power stations and five wind farms that deliver around 30% of New Zealand’s electricity generation. In Australia, Meridian owns and operates two wind farms and three hydro stations. Guy's role also involves managing existing and future renewable projects.

Chris joined Meridian when it was formed in 1999. He was initially tasked with setting up Meridian’s spot electricity trading function, before undertaking a number of roles managing Meridian’s relationship with Transpower. In 2008, he returned to manage the spot trading team and subsequently, following the merger of the generation control function, spent 6 years as the Energy Trading Manager.
Before being appointed as General Manager Wholesale in August 2019, Chris’s more recent role has involved working on the strategy side of the wholesale business as Meridian’s Portfolio Manager.

Prior to Meridian, Chris worked three years for ECNZ across a number of engineering and commercial disciplines. He has extensive industry experience through his interactions across various roles, forums and advisory groups over the last 23 years.

Julian Smith joined Meridian as Chief Customer Officer in March 2018. He is responsible for both Meridian and Powershop NZ’s customer sales, service and operations. He has been leading businesses in New Zealand and Australia for the last 15 years and has an extensive background in strategy, marketing, customer experience and business transformation.

Julian was previously the Deputy CEO for the Tertiary Education Commission, the head of Corporate Strategy and Customer Experience for Westpac and the NZ General Manager for MYOB. He has worked in a broad range of industries including financial services, internet and digital, FMCG, utilities and government.

A qualified lawyer, Julian also sits on the board of the Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra 

Ed McManus became the Chief Executive Officer of Meridian Energy Australia and Powershop Australia in January 2016. Ed joined Meridian as General Manager of Powershop Australia in October 2014, from realestate.com.au where he held a number of commercial roles. Prior to that he spent several years at GlaxoSmithKline and headed up its respiratory business, having started his career as a medical research scientist.

Ed is responsible Meridian’s integrated generation and retail business in Australia, delivering a better energy experience to a growing number of customers. Ed and his team also contribute to the debate on how Australia can decarbonise its energy system while maintaining reliability and affordability. Ed sits on the advisory board of the Melbourne Energy Institute at the University of Melbourne.