Leading a Global Energy Company in Unsettled Times: Challenges and Opportunities

Klaus Barbknecht,
Executive Board Member, Verbundnetz Gas           

Mr. Barbknecht will hold a luncheon discussion with a select group of students to discuss his experiences leading an international energy company and his insights into the business in times of geopolitical uncertainty and natural disaster. This lunch will include Dean Magid and Arpad von Lazar, professor emeritus of the Fletcher School, and is hosted by the Perlmutter Institute for Global Business Leadership. We will provide lunch.

Please RSVP to Elisabeth Mathieu by April 6 (ibscenters@brandeis.edu). We hope you'll be able to join the discussion.

Bio:

Klaus-Dieter Barbknecht has been a leader in the European energy field for many years, and is a member of the executive board of Verbundnetz Gas (VNG), an energy company engaged in the storage, transmission, purchase, and sale of natural gas, which mainly operates in Russia, Germany, and Norway. In addition to his function at VNG, Mr. Barbknecht is managing director of VNG – Erdgascommerz GmbH, a Leipzig-based business owned by VNG. He is also a member of the board of the German-Norwegian Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

Mr. Barbknecht served as president of Gas Storage Europe from 2005-2008, representing the gas storage operators in Europe. He also served as vice president of Gas Infrastructure Europe during that time. From 2000-2004, he served as head of the gas transport and gas storage departments at VNG, and then ran the newly established strategic coordination department. Mr. Barbknecht started his professional career as a lawyer and worked as a legal advisor in the oil and natural gas business.