Leadership

Meet our
Leadership Team

Avesh Padayachee

chief executive officer

Biography

Avesh Padayachee | CEO

Fibon Group CEO Avesh Padayachee’s first career was in corporate law, which he “absolutely loved” – but it would ultimately come a distant second to becoming a South African renewable energy trailblazer.

“I knew absolutely nothing about renewable energy,” Padayachee says of his time as an attorney. But a seed was planted while employed at respected law firm Webber Wentzel, when he was pulled into working on a West African hydroelectric project, and he saw how (sustainable) power could be generated by private interests and provided to a national utility.

“This was fascinating to me,” he recalls.

In 2012, Padayachee, driven by a desire to create “something out of nothing”, left the legal profession and launched himself into the world of renewable energy. This was the genesis of today’s Fibon Group.

Padayachee’s journey since then has at times not been easy – he smiles ruefully at how years of hard work was undone by political disruption, for example, and chuckles at the time Fibon sold medical consumables and agricultural produce to stay afloat – but his efforts also did not go unrecognised: in 2017, he was named a Future Energy Leader by the World Energy Council and chosen for the FEL-100 Programme, a global community of 100 young professionals who are committed to shaping the global energy future.

While his vision, and Fibon’s approach, has metamorphosed over time (the initial focus was on providing energy to rural communities, then to supply African utilities with energy, and finally to serving the private sector), what has remained unchanged is Padayachee’s dogged determination to change how electricity is generated, purchased and consumed in Africa.

Ruché Pretorius

Legal counsel

Biography

Ruchè Pretorius | LEGAL COUNSEL

As legal counsel, it’s Ruché Pretorius’s job to make sure that every agreement Fibon Energy enters into – be it with a client, a partner, a sub-contractor or a supplier – is well contracted, balanced and fair to both Fibon and its customers.

She’s involved from the very beginning of every relationship, getting line of sight of the full range of Fibon’s operations, and making sure that delivery happens in line with client expectations, and in line, too, with business objectives.

Pretorius has an LLB from North-West University, as well as a master’s degree in environmental law and governance. She manages negotiations, advises on contractual issues, drafts project notices and generally makes sure – completely sure – that project process flow rolls out predictably and in line with the expectations of all parties.

Pretorius gets her professional satisfaction from creating an optimally enabling business environment through legal services and counsel that allows people to get on with the business at hand, so that the renewable energy solutions that Fibon and Fibon clients invest in progress seamlessly from proposal and design stages to initiation, implementation and full operational delivery; and that all this takes place in compliance with the law.

“It’s very rewarding to work in renewable energy: knowing we’re investing our skills and time in the future as much as in the business of today. Fibon is a very supportive environment. We learn from each other and we work together to get projects over the line,” says Pretorius.

“There’s a very clear vision at Fibon: to make a viable difference to the way business is powered in South Africa. Each of us brings a particular strength to delivering on this vision. It’s a growth-focused, innovative, environment full of optimism about tomorrow.”

Marike Wilson

Chief financial officer

Biography

Marike Wilson | CFO

As chief financial officer, Marike Wilson is in charge of ensuring that the Fibon Group fulfils its fiduciary responsibilities. But also that the power purchase agreements it concludes with its customers are proper – so that Fibon is profitable, and the customers enjoy substantial cost saving benefits for switching to renewable energy.

Wilson, a University of Johannesburg BCom (Accounting) graduate, completed her CA(SA) designation at Deloitte in 2009. After spending two years at the firm’s Southampton office, she joined a JSE-listed financial services company in South Africa. It was there that she would eventually step away from a group finance role and into a whole new challenge: heading up sustainability. “It was a steep learning curve,” she grins.

But Wilson persevered, and succeeded, in her new position. Eventually, however, she needed a fresh challenge “and Fibon was the logical next step”. She joined the company in 2022, bringing with her both business process and sustainability credentials – as well as knowledge of what an entity such as a listed company would need from its renewable energy partner.

“It’s a dynamic, fast-growing industry,” she says of the renewable energy space, and with growing demand there is a need for quality systems. Sustainable energy brings with it manifold benefits, Wilson adds: sustainable business, energy independence, job creation (within the renewables industry and more widely), and of course a cleaner environment.

Clearly, a large part of Wilson’s job satisfaction stems from supporting Fibon’s customers to realise immediate and long-term energy benefits, helping them to achieve their sustainability goals without risk or capital outlay, but she is also inspired by the team around her. “It’s amazing to work with highly skilled people,” she states.

Jason Hoggan

Head of New Business Development

Biography

Jason Hoggan | SENIOR MANAGER: SPECIAL PROJECTS

As Fibon Energy’s senior manager of special projects, it’s Jason Hoggan’s job to manage initiatives and projects that expand Fibon’s sustainable energy work, offering clients (and the national economy) all the value that comes from innovation in energy supply, trade and management.

“Fibon is a deeply entrepreneurial business, and my role here puts me in the very centre of taking Fibon’s entrepreneurial delivery to clients. My focus is to take fresh, innovative thinking and doing, and apply it to tailored solutions that address the specific energy needs of the people we do business with,” he says.

“It’s never, ever a one-size-fits-all approach”, he says, adding that Fibon is big enough, experienced enough and IP-rich enough to meet the most demanding power challenge; but equally nimble enough to ensure every client gets the individual, partnership-focused attention they deserve.

“It means,” Hoggan says, “that no day at work is the same as another. Our client-centric approach to delivery means every project is unique. It encourages innovation across the team. Every challenge is a fresh challenge.”

Of course, he adds, the clear benefit for Fibon’s clients is partnering with a team of sustainable energy specialists who are fully invested in understanding, and solving, unique (if knotty) power issues. This investment is not only because it makes business sense, but also because Fibon people really enjoy doing things this way.

“This is a hugely competitive sector. One has to be innovative. Innovation and collaboration. It’s what we’re about at Fibon.”

Awie Bosman

head of engineering

Biography

Awie Bosman | HEAD OF ENGINEERING

“I want to protect the Earth and everything on it,” says Fibon Group head of engineering Awie Bosman. It’s an idealistic statement to make, certainly – the thing is, he’s making good on it.

Armed with a BSc in information technology from the University of Johannesburg and a master’s degree in electrical and electronic engineering from North-West University, Bosman initially worked in demand-side management, supporting mines and heavy industry to use energy more efficiently.

Eventually a friend led Bosman into the world of photovoltaic energy. It would be another seven years before he crossed paths with Fibon Group CEO Avesh Padayachee, but his first impression was strong: “I really liked his story.” Following a second meeting, Bosman joined the group in 2023.

Bosman and his engineering team are responsible for devising sustainable, cost-saving energy solutions for clients. But, he jokes, he is “also the handbrake” in the company, bringing the sales and technical teams into closer alignment. “I enjoy it a lot. You don’t just get that,” he says of his job, making light of sometimes working long hours. “I love being in the renewables industry.”

Bosman says a persistent frustration is the misconception that switching to renewable energy means going off the grid, as baseload capacity remains a requirement in the energy mix: “People think initially you’re giving them an off-grid system – it’s a big mind shift.” On the flip side, he says, it’s always “a really good feeling” to switch on a customer’s new system.

His career start notwithstanding, Bosman’s found his niche in supply-side management, and providing Fibon’s customers with renewable energy systems. His desire to protect the Earth is as earnest as ever. “I want to make a difference,” he says.