Leadership Team

John Ivulich

Country Chair

John was appointed Country Chair of ATCO Australia in March 2023, and is the first Australian to be appointed to the position for the Canadian based company.  John will also continue as Chief Financial Officer, a position he has held since August 2014.  John joined ATCO as Director, Finance when the company acquired WestNet Infrastructure Group in 2011, having been with the organisation since 2006, when it was Alinta. 

As Country Chair, John is responsible for stewarding and representing the company’s broad interests with government and regulatory stakeholders across all lines of business in Australia. In his role, John will continue to hold the strategic financial planning responsibility for ATCO in Australia and oversees the delivery of all common group functions that support our Distribution, Renewables and emerging Transmission business in Australia. 

John is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree, majoring in Accounting & Finance from the University of Western Australia and completed an Executive Leadership programme at Ivy Business School in Canada.  John is also a member of the Institute of Company Directors in Australia and completed an Applied Finance & Investment Diploma with FINSIA. 

John was born in Western Australia and is married with two adult sons.

Patrick Creaghan

Outgoing Country Chair

Pat was appointed Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer in June 2017. In his role Pat is responsible for identifying and leading strategic growth initiatives that represent ATCO’s complete suite of premier solutions across all business lines, including Western Australia’s largest natural gas distribution network and ATCO’s power generation assets. He also serves on the Australian Board of ATCO Structures & Logistics Pty Ltd. Pat has more than 25 years’ experience in a variety of operational and leadership roles and has served as President, Storage & Liquids and Senior Vice President, Corporate Development since joining ATCO in 2011. Pat has also held executive positions with Shell Canada and Royal Dutch Shell Group.

Karen Nielsen

Managing Director, Global Renewables

Karen was appointed to Managing Director, Global Renewables in November 2021 after rejoining ATCO in June 2021 as Senior Vice President, Renewables North America. Based in Sydney, Karen is responsible for ATCO’s global renewables business with a key focus on Australia. With over 30 years’ experience in the global energy sector, Karen brings a wealth of experience in strategy, innovation and project execution.

Karen holds a Bachelor of Science degree with distinction in Electrical Engineering from the University of Saskatchewan and is a licensed professional engineer of APEGA, and APEGBC; as well as a certified Corporate Director (ICD.D).

JEFFREY HILTON

GENERAL MANAGER, TRANSMISSION DEVELOPMENT

Jeffrey joined ATCO in September 2022 in the role of General Manager, Transmission Development. As an operations and business development expert with more than 30 years’ experience in the Power Delivery & Generation, Telecom, Civil, and Geotechnical industries, Jeffrey will take the lead in developing ATCO’s transmission business in Australia. Across his years in the industry, Jeffrey has worked in executive level roles across organisations such as Bell Nexia, SNC Lavalin, Enmax, Almita and Henkels & McCoy. During his time at SNC Lavalin, he was accountable for the transmission and distribution activities for the Altalink portfolio in Alberta. Jeffrey holds a Masters of Business Administration from Queens University in Ontario, Canada and a Business Management Certificate from Georgian College in Ontario.

Stevan Green

President, ATCO Gas Division 

Stevan was appointed President ATCO’s Gas Division in August 2018 having first joined the business in 2017 as General Manager Assets and Engineering Innovation. He has more than 25 years’ experience in the resources industry including senior roles with Shell and BHP. Stevan’s expertise covers project management, compliance and managing external business risks, and the practical application of state-of-the-art technologies. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) from the University of Western Australia and is a ​Chartered Member of the Institute of Engineers Australia and a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Simon Byrne

General Counsel & Company Secretary

Simon joined ATCO's Australian Gas Division in 2010 and has held various executive positions including Senior Legal Counsel and General Manager, Commercial Services.  Since December 2013 he has been part of ATCO's Executive Management team and holds responsibility for HSE, Facilities Management, Risk Management, Insurance and Internal Audit co-ordination, while also providing legal advice across all ATCO companies in Australia.  Additionally, Simon is Company Secretary and an Executive Director of ATCO Australia.  A qualified lawyer, he holds Bachelor of Jurisprudence and Bachelor of Law degrees from the University of Western Australia.

NATALIE O’MALLEY

GENERAL MANAGER, CORPORATE AFFAIRS & BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT

Natalie was appointed General Manager Corporate Affairs and Business Improvement in October 2021, having first joined ATCO in 2016 initially as Senior Internal Communications Advisor and held subsequent roles with ATCO in customer experience, business improvement and change management. Natalie brings more than fifteen years’ career experience in the utilities and oil and gas sectors in Western Australia, having held various corporate affairs and customer roles with Chevron, Synergy and Western Power. 

EMMA HARRIS

GENERAL MANAGER, HUMAN RESOURCES

Emma joined ATCO Australia as General Manager Human Resources in February 2023. Emma has built 20 years’ experience in Human Resources through prominent roles at Rio Tinto and BHP, in which she has garnered significant experience in HR operations, leadership and culture, employee relations, and talent management. Emma has a Bachelor’s of Law and Business from the University of Newcastle. Emma continues to combine her experience with education, currently studying the Psychology of Leadership at Curtin University in Western Australia.