Zero Industrial was founded by Ted Kniesche and Jim McDermott in 2024. They saw an emerging ecosystem of technologies poised to electrify and decarbonize industrial facilities. However, the market lacked solution providers capable of developing and financing these projects for industrial customers. Zero Industrial was built to fill that role.
Zero Industrial’s mission is to make industry cleaner and more competitive by developing and delivering fully financed industrial electrification solutions for its customers.
Industry runs on heat and power, and today, most of it still comes from fossil fuels. Zero Industrial is changing that. We develop, finance, build, and operate clean energy systems that replace fossil-fueled heat and power at industrial facilities across North America.
We’re building a team of developers, engineers, project managers, and energy professionals who want to build the infrastructure of the future. If you want to be part of the transition that’s making industry more competitive, we’d like to hear from you.
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Ted Kniesche is founder and CEO of Zero Industrial. He has worked for the past two decades in clean energy development – with executive experience in business and project development, corporate and project finance, as well as government affairs. Ted was co-founder and VP of Business Development at Fulcrum BioEnergy for 13 years, where he led Fulcrum’s entire development program through the financing of its first commercial-scale project. Ted was most recently a Principal at Aiga Capital Partners where he helped invest development capital into sustainable infrastructure as part of Aiga’s inaugural fund.
Ted lives in Charleston, SC with his wife and four kids.
Charles Miller is Chief Commercial Officer at Zero Industrial, where he leads the company’s commercial strategy and customer origination.
Charles brings over 30 years of experience in energy, combined heat and power, and project development. He founded NgenX Energy and deployed over $150 million in projects at Washington Gas. Charles also launched UGI Performance Solutions, the company’s renewable energy division.
Mike Brady is SVP of Development at Zero Industrial, where he leads customer origination and development in Canada. Mike is a seasoned energy executive with 25 years of experience across five continents, having originated 3,500 MW of sustainable power plant contracts over the course of his career. He spent 18 years in VP leadership roles at Aecon Group and Babcock & Wilcox Canada (BWXT), spanning corporate development, strategic planning, government relations, and business development. Most recently, Mike served as Chief Commercial Officer at TRILLION, a Houston-based renewable fuel development company, where he led capital development and negotiated commercial contracts with major fuel terminal operators and O&G companies.
Mike holds a Professional Engineering license, a Bachelor of Engineering Science from Western University, and an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at Western University.
Will Price is VP of Finance and Accounting at Zero Industrial, where he manages accounting, budgeting, and financial reporting. Will brings project finance and financial management expertise, having previously served as a finance leader at GE Power Services and GE Oil & Gas. He also held a finance leadership role at Newell Brands in the manufacturing sector.
Arvind Balachander is Director of Business Development at Zero Industrial, where he leads new market and customer development and manages ZI’s HEAT origination software and U.S. utility engagement strategy. Arvind brings over 15 years of experience in global renewables, having developed and financed more than 8,000 MW and $10 billion in projects over the course of his career. He previously held roles at SunEdison, Terraform, and Nexif Energy.
Mujinga Mwamufiya is Director of Strategic Partnerships at Zero Industrial, where she leads strategic relationship development and commercial collaboration to expand the company’s market reach, support project origination, and advance industrial heat electrification solutions. Mujinga brings over 25 years of renewable energy experience across five continents. She previously served as VP of Strategic Projects at Electric Hydrogen and as Managing Director at Fulcrum BioEnergy, where she structured more than $4 billion in project financings and led global e-fuels initiatives.
Alex Plexico is a Senior Associate in Business Development at Zero Industrial, where he helps lead U.S. customer origination and commercial development efforts. Prior to joining Zero Industrial, Alex held investing roles at Leyline Renewable Capital and Plexus Capital, where he evaluated, structured, and executed investments across renewable energy, project finance, and the lower middle market. He previously worked in investment banking and began his career at KPMG.
Teddy Popkin is a Business Development Analyst at Zero Industrial, where he supports market intelligence and customer origination through the company’s HEAT platform and builds its business development, marketing, and investor materials. Before joining Zero Industrial, he worked at Skytree, where he supported North American market development and global commercialization efforts for the company’s Direct Air Capture systems. Teddy holds a B.A. in Economics with minors in Sustainability and French from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Charlie Lenk is an Analyst on Zero Industrial’s Market Development team, where he focuses on electricity market analysis and pricing across the U.S. and Canada and helps build the company’s HEAT origination and market-intelligence software. Since joining Zero Industrial in 2025, he has worked on thermal energy storage optimization modeling and the company’s internal AI and data tooling. Charlie holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Ohio State University and dual master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Sustainable Systems from the University of Michigan.
Brent Hadley is the AI Integration Specialist at Zero Industrial, where he builds the company’s AI automation and agentic workflows, including internal data pipelines, document and knowledge systems, financial-modeling automation, and the channel-partner dashboard. Before joining Zero Industrial, he developed AI and software systems at Freeman Boat Works, building tools for sales lead scoring, operations, and warranty tracking, and he previously held roles in e-commerce and operations at Maxwood Furniture. Brent holds a degree in Economics with a minor in Mathematics from Clemson University.
Ben Kennedy is a Canadian Development Consultant at Zero Industrial, where he supports business development, go-to-market strategy, and engagement with industrial customers pursuing heat electrification solutions across Canada. Ben brings more than 20 years of experience leading operations, project delivery, and commercial growth across the power generation, clean-energy, and industrial sectors. Before joining Zero Industrial, he served as Senior Vice President of Operations at Nu:ionic Technologies, Vice President and General Manager of Power & Renewables at AtkinsRéalis, and Country Leader for GE Renewable Energy in Canada.
Michelle Chambers is CFO at Evok Innovations, where she leads the firm’s finance function. She brings over 15 years of experience as an executive finance leader across venture-backed and growth-stage companies. Michelle serves on Zero Industrial’s board representing preferred shareholders, providing strategic guidance and governance.
Jim is a co-founder and the managing partner of Rusheen Capital Management, LLC (“RCM”). RCM is a Santa Monica-based private equity firm investing in energy, environment, and sustainability. Prior to forming RCM, Jim founded and ran US Renewables Group (“USRG”), a private equity firm focused on renewable power, clean fuels and energy infrastructure.
As an investor and entrepreneur, Jim has started, run and invested in over 35 companies. Examples include: Stamps.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: STMP) (Founder & CEO), NanoH2O, Inc. – acquired by LG Chem (Founder & Board Member), Fulcrum BioEnergy, Inc. (Founder, Executive & Chairman), Moleaer, Inc. (Founder & Board Member), Carbon Engineering (former Board Member and sold Occidental), 1PointFive, Inc. (Founder and CEO – sold to Occidental), Avnos, Inc. (Founder and Board Member), Carbon Ridge, Inc. (Founder and Board Member), and Zero Industrial (Founder and Board Member).
Ted Kniesche is founder and CEO of Zero Industrial. He has worked for the past two decades in clean energy development – with executive experience in business and project development, corporate and project finance, as well as government affairs. Ted was co-founder and VP of Business Development at Fulcrum BioEnergy for 13 years, where he led Fulcrum’s entire development program through the financing of its first commercial-scale project. Ted was most recently a Principal at Aiga Capital Partners where he helped invest development capital into sustainable infrastructure as part of Aiga’s inaugural fund.
Ted lives in Charleston, SC with his wife and four kids.
Charlie Daum is VP of Development and Origination at Generate Capital, where he focuses on scaling infrastructure solutions and market execution. Charlie was previously a founding member and Managing Director at Alturus, an industrial energy-as-a-service and ESCO business focused on decarbonization solutions for large energy users. He serves on Zero Industrial’s board as an independent member, providing strategic direction on project origination and commercial strategy.
