Joel M. Link is President of Tenaska Development and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of Tenaska’s conventional and renewable energy project development and commercialization. This includes direct management of the engineering and construction team. His leadership extends across a diverse range of technologies and project types, encompassing carbon dioxide capture and sequestration, natural gas-fueled generation, wind, solar, hydrogen and battery energy storage projects. He is a member of Tenaska’s Executive Leadership Board.
At Tenaska, Mr. Link oversees a robust U.S. development pipeline comprising more than 125 projects with a cumulative generating capacity exceeding 30,000 megawatts (MW). He leads a team of over 60 individuals, directing their efforts across development execution, origination, engineering, procurement and construction disciplines. He led Tenaska’s entry into the wind energy market through the successful commercialization of nearly 800 MW of wind energy projects now in operation. Under his leadership, Tenaska became a pioneer in the field of carbon capture and sequestration project development, positioning the company strategically ahead of the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.
Mr. Link’s extensive career in the energy industry spans over 25 years and includes notable achievements in commercial deal-making and energy project development, both domestically and internationally. As an experienced energy development leader, he boasts a proven track record having led the successful development, execution and commercialization of financeable energy projects across a wide range of technologies totaling more than 5,000 MW of capacity with capital costs exceeding $6 billion and long-term electricity sales contracts surpassing $25 billion.
Before joining Tenaska in 2016, Mr. Link held significant roles at SolarReserve, LLC, where he served as Vice President of Business Development for the Americas, Australia and Asia. His responsibilities included managing the development of utility-scale solar thermal and photovoltaic power projects, as well as spearheading corporate business development and origination efforts targeting international mining and industrial customers with a focus on providing remote, off-grid baseload power solutions. He also held the position of Vice President of Development at Invenergy, LLC, overseeing the gas-fueled and wind energy generation businesses in the Central U.S. region. He began his career at Black & Veatch, performing detailed design engineering, followed by a move to the Independent Engineering & Project Assessment Group, where he led detailed technical and financial due diligence reviews for lenders and financial institutions.
Mr. Link is an active member of the Nebraska Children’s Hospital board of directors and is a member of the American Society of Chemical Engineers.
Mr. Link has a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame.