James Rhodes

Chairman / CEO / Co-Founder at Magnuss

Speaker

James Rhodes is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience in climate finance, power generation, maritime shipping, renewable energy, project development, investment banking and management consulting. He brings expertise as advisor, operator, investor, and leader in sustainability, creating meaningful impact on environmental challenges globally.

Mr. Rhodes is the Chairman, CEO and Co-founder of Magnuss, a maritime technology and project development firm, which provides onboard systems that reduce fuel consumption and emissions for global shipping. Magnuss has created and patented a wind-based propulsion system called the Magnuss VOSS (or Vertically-variable Ocean Sail System), for which Mr. Rhodes is the co-inventor.

Mr. Rhodes is also an Executive Board Member of the International WindShip Association (IWSA), a joint industry consortium that promotes wind propulsion for commercial shipping and dedicated to the decarbonization of maritime shipping worldwide. A frequent speaker at industry events, Mr. Rhodes is named on international patents in the fields of shipping, renewable energy and transportation. He has authored numerous articles on sustainable energy, shipping technology and the global carbon markets.

Prior to establishing Magnuss, Mr. Rhodes was Chief Operating Officer of GE/AES GHG Services, a renewable energy development firm and joint venture between General Electric and AES Corporation, and served as a member of its Executive Management and Investment Committees. He led strategy, investments, M&A, business development, project development, and carbon asset management.

Before that, Mr. Rhodes was Managing Director of Morgan Stanley. Within the power and energy sectors, he served organizations in twelve years with the firm ranging from emerging growth companies to Fortune 100 corporations and completed over 150 advisory assignments. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Mr. Rhodes spent a decade in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and in management consulting at Booz Allen. He holds an M.B.A. with distinction from Columbia Business School and a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from Brown University.