Leadership Team

John Ivulich

CEO and Country Chair

John was appointed Chief Executive Officer of ATCO Australia in October 2023, and Country Chair in March 2023.  He is the first Australian to be appointed to these positions for the global energy infrastructure and logistics company. 

As CEO and Country Chair, John has complete business accountability for ATCO’s regulated gas utility business and its renewables, power, clean fuels, and emerging transmission businesses in Australia and all the functions that support them. He is also responsible for developing and executing ATCO’s strategy in Australia and stewarding and representing ATCO’s broad interests with government and regulatory stakeholders across all of ATCO’s lines of business in Australia, including ATCO Structures.

Mr Ivulich joined ATCO as Director, Finance during the acquisition of WA Gas Networks in 2011. His prior experience includes financial and leadership roles in the consulting and corporate sectors in Australia and the U.K. John is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree, majoring in Accounting & Finance from the University of Western Australia and completed the Executive Leadership program at Ivey 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 The Financial Services Institute of Australasia.

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

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.

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. 

HUGH SMITH

EXECUTIVE GENERAL MANAGER – STRATEGY & CORPORATE AFFAIRS

Hugh was appointed General Manager Regulatory Strategy & Policy in August 2024, having first joined ATCO’s Australian Gas business in 2017 as Manager Regulatory Strategy. Hugh has held subsequent roles with ATCO in economic regulation, energy policy, customer experience and corporate affairs. Hugh brings more than 18 years’ experience in the Western Australian energy sector, having held various regulatory and energy policy positions with Western Power and the Public Utilities Office. Hugh holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Information Technology) and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Western Australia.

CHRIS JUDD

EXECUTIVE GENERAL MANAGER, ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE AND RENEWABLE FUELS

Chris was appointed Executive General Manager, Energy Infrastructure Australia in July 2023.

With a career spanning more than thirty years in the design and construction of infrastructure across many industries, Chris is a specialist in large scale renewables and turnkey contracting. Chris has been a senior executive within the Australian renewable energy sector since 2004 and will be responsible for ATCO Australia’s unregulated energy and clean fuel interests, ranging from gas and renewables electricity generation, energy storage (pumped hydro and BESS), new energy and power systems, hydrogen and other clean fuel solutions. 

Prior to joining ATCO Australia, Chris was EGM – Electricity Markets for Jemena, establishing a team to develop and grow an asset portfolio of clean electricity generation, transmission and storage (PHES and BESS) assets. Chris’s previous energy sector roles have been as CEO at UPC Renewables Australia – Transmission; and CEO at Senvion APAC (formerly REpower), Country Manager for Suzlon Energia Eolica do Brasil Ltda, and COO for Suzlon Energy Australia.

Chris has a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil), a Graduate Diploma in Project Management, is a Graduate Member of the Institute of Company Directors and an Alumni of the Programme for Executive Development from IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland.

JOHN STAMOPOULOS

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, GROUP FINANCIAL CONTROLS

John Stamopoulos has been appointed to the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO), at ATCO Australia.

Mr Stamopoulos was previously the CFO and Company Secretary at Pacific Energy, and contributed to their growth in the remote, off-grid energy sector.

Mr Stamopoulos has more than 25 years of experience in finance, commercial operations, and investor relations across multinational resource companies, listed environments (ASX and TSX) and large private equity-owned companies.

His prior roles at Quadrant Energy and Mirabela Nickel showcase his strategic funding, treasury, and investment analysis skills, and at Quadrant Energy, he led the finance division through a successful ASX best practice restructuring process following the acquisition by a consortium.

At Mirabela Nickel, he served as the General Manager of Commercial/Investor Relations, contributing to major refinancing and restructuring deals while overseeing the company's growth into a significant nickel, copper, and cobalt producer.

As CFO, John’s team will comprise of Group Finance, Corporate Development and Regulatory Strategy & Policy.

Russell Godsall

Executive General Manager, Gas Operations

Russell was appointed Executive General Manager, Gas Operations in June 2023, bringing more than three decades of experience in the energy industry.  Prior to his appointment as Executive General Manager, Russell was General Manger Network Operations, and held various other management positions for ATCO, and its predecessor companies, WA Gas Networks and WestNet Energy Services.

Russell has extensive experience working with multiple professional disciplines in the development of strategic initiatives driving transformational business change.  He has a passion for learning and improvement with a team and technology lead innovation focus, and a track record of developing and leading medium to large size high performance teams.

Russell graduated from Curtin University with a Bachelor of Commerce, and has a Graduate Certificate in Business, Business Administration and Management from The University of Western Australia.  He recently completed the Executive Leadership Development Program at The Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School.  Russell is also an Associate Fellow at the Australian Institute of Management.