David Smol

David has over thirty five years of work experience, including in the energy sector in the UK and New Zealand, for Conoco UK Limited, Electricity Corporation and ILEX Energy Consulting. He was part of the Contact Energy establishment team in 1995-1996 and a member of the team that developed the rules for the New Zealand electricity market. In 2008 David was appointed as chief executive of Ministry of Economic Development and, from 2012-2017 was the inaugural chief executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), following the merger of four government departments. David has an M-Phil in economics from Cambridge University and was made a Companion of the Queen’s Service Order in 2018.