The current Board of Directors of our general partner comprises of eight members. The names and biographies of each of the Directors are set forth below.
Derek Pannell (Chairman)
Derek was a Managing Partner of Brookfield Asset Management from 2006 to 2010. Prior to this he was the Chief Executive Officer of Noranda Inc. and Falconbridge Limited from 2002 to 2006. He also served as the President and Chief Operating Officer for Noranda Inc. between 2001 and 2002. Derek is a metallurgical engineer with over 41 years of experience in the mining and metals industry. He is former Chair of the Mining Association of Canada and former board member of the International Council on Mining and Metals. Derek serves on the boards of Agrium Inc. and African Barrick Gold. Derek is a professional engineer registered in Quebec and Peru and is an Associate of the Royal School of Mines and a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineers. Derek holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Imperial College in London, England.
Jeffrey Blidner
Jeffrey is a Senior Managing Partner at Brookfield Asset Management Inc. and is responsible for Strategic Planning as well as Transaction Execution. He is also the Chairman of Brookfield’s $32 billion global infrastructure platform. Prior to joining Brookfield in 2000, Jeff was a senior partner at a Canadian law firm focused on merchant banking transactions, public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, management buy-outs, restructurings and private equity transactions. Jeff was called to the Bar in Ontario as a Gold Medalist in 1974.
Dr. David Hamill
David is the former Chairman of the Prime Infrastructure Board, a position he held since 2008 after joining that Board in 2002. Prior to that, David held posts in Queensland (Australia) Parliament including Treasurer of Queensland, Minister for Education, Minister for Transport and Minister Assisting the Premier on Economic and Trade Development. David holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Queensland, a Master of Arts from Oxford University and a Doctorate of Philosophy from University of Queensland and is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Transport.
Arthur Jacobson, Jr.
Arthur is a former Managing Director of Spear, Leeds Kellogg Specialists LLC (a division of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.) from 2001 to 2004. He was partner of Benjamin Jacobson and Sons, LLC from 1987 to 2001. He was also a specialist on the New York Stock Exchange for 16 years, from 1988 to 2004. Prior to that he was an account executive at Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc. from 1985 to 1987. Arthur holds a degree in business administration from the University of Southern California.
Lou J. Maroun
Lou is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Real Estate Advisors/Sigma Capital Corporation, which specializes in international real estate advisory. Prior to this role, he was the Executive Chairman of ING Real Estate Canada, and held executive positions in a number of real estate companies where he was responsible for overseeing operations, real estate transactions, asset and property management, as well as many other related functions. Lou graduated from the University of New Brunswick in 1972 with a Bachelors Degree with a major in psychology.
Lars Rodert
Lars is a Senior Portfolio Manager for Inter IKEA Treasury in North America and Europe. Prior to this role, he was most recently CIO, North America, at SEB Asset management and prior to that he was Head of International Equities at the same firm. Based in Belgium, Lars has an in depth knowledge of continental European markets and is seasoned in analyzing investment opportunities. Lars holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Stockholm University, with a major in finance.
Anne Schaumburg
Anne has been a member of the board of directors of NRG Energy, Inc., a power generation company listed on the NYSE, since 2005. From 1984 until her retirement in 2002, Anne was with the Global Energy Group of Credit Suisse First Boston, where she last served as Managing Director. From 1979 to 1984, she was with the Utilities Group at Dean Witter Financial Services Group, where she last served as Managing Director. From 1971 to 1978, Anne was at the First Boston Corporation in the Public Utilities Group. Anne is a graduate of the City University of New York.
Danesh Varma
Danesh is the Chief Financial Officer of Labrador Iron Mines Limited. He joined Labrador Iron Mines Limited in 2007 and was Chief Financial Officer of Minco PLC from 2006 to 2007. From 1999 to 2005, Danesh was a director at Dundee B Corp. Ltd. Prior to that, Danesh held a number of senior positions in the banking, corporate finance and accounting fields. Danesh holds a degree from Delhi University and is a Chartered Accountant.