Mr. Kong became our director on March 31, 2025. Mr. Kong is the chairman of the audit committee and a member of the compensation committee and nomination committee. Mr. Kong is a Chartered Accountant with more than 29 years of experience of corporate development, private equity investment as well as accounting and corporate governance. In the past decade, he developed and managed several energy projects. This includes identifying and structuring projects to on-board partners such as Engie, LG Energy and Berkeley Energy, negotiate with government agencies for permits and concession rights, with technical consultants and contractors for the plant construction. From 2021 to 2022, he was first acting as an independent non-executive director of Darco Water Technologies Limited in Singapore then later became a director and chief executive office of the Company. During his tenure, he was responsible for all corporate affairs, including but not limited to corporate development, finance and governance. After his departure from Darco Water Technologies Limited, he founded Penvest Co. Pte. Ltd., where he continues to provide corporate advisory and project management services to corporates, mainly in the renewable energy industry. Throughout his career, he held key positions in finance such as chief financial officer and corporate management of several early-stage ventures in the renewable energy and healthcare industry. He provided corporate advisory and project management services to both public and private companies. Started his career with Ernst & Young LLP, then private equity arm of ING Barings before progressing into several corporate roles including chief financial officer and directors of private and public companies. At Present, Mr. Kong is serving as an independent non-executive director and chairman of the audit committee of JEP Holdings Limited and he is also serving as the independent director and is a member of the Audit Committee of Ever Glory United Holdings Limited. Mr. Kong obtained a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Manchester, United Kingdom and a Bachelor’s degree in Accountancy from the National University of Singapore. He is a full member of the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants and member of the Singapore Institute of Directors. During his term with Ernst & Young LLP, Mr. Kong had numerous clients with U.S. GAAP group reporting. He was transferred to the Orange County, California office for around a year to gain further exposure to accounting and auditing practice in the United States, including the engagement of the audit of Apria Healthcare Group, Inc., which was formed with the merger of Abbey Healthcare Group Inc. and Homedco Group Inc. As the investment manager with Baring Communications Equity Asia Pte Ltd, Mr. Kong was involved in the proposed public listing of 3rd Frontier Limited on both Nasdaq and the Singapore Exchange Ltd.
