Leigh Noda has a very broad based experience in the petroleum refining, petroleum products and alternate fuels arenas. His experience covers refinery operations, technology, business planning and strategy, business and project development, finance and EH&S (environmental, health and safety). He has a Masters in Business Administration from the UCLA Anderson School and a Bachelors of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of California at Davis. His experience and education are the basis for strong analytical skills, and an ability to address complex challenges and opportunities.
With Atlantic Richfield (ARCO) for 28 years, Leigh held numerous positions including key positions during the period when many critical decisions and investments were made to the two west coast refineries to address new stationary source environmental and fuel standards. While he was manager of technology and business at Carson Refinery, ARCO developed the first environmentally reformulated fuel (EC-1) that was introduced to the market in 1989. The fuel was developed in collaboration with fuels and central technology groups to demonstrate that gasoline can be cleaner burning and can be part of the future fuels mix of the country. In support of the merger with BP, he prepared interrogatories to the FTC demonstrating the neutral impact of the $36 billion BP Amoco-ARCO merger on the cost of petroleum products from West Coast petroleum refineries.
After ARCO, Leigh has consulted on a wide variety of projects ranging from development of investment opportunities for a private equity firm, to evaluation of the potential of innovative new technologies, to development of an innovative project for GTL plant in Trinidad. He performed various analyses for GTL including market analysis to support financing of projects, and as advisor to the Country Manager, served a number of functions including: organization development, management systems, commercial and regulatory issues, technical coordination, investor and lender presentations, and partner relations. In support of the US Agency for International Development he authored a white paper of US laws and regulations for use by Kazakhstan in development of their regulatory and environmental laws.
He has extensive experience in international business having been part of projects and business initiatives in China, Indonesia, Venezuela, Brazil, Mexico and Trinidad. As part of his role in China, he delivered lectures to visiting executives from Sinopec on the US oil industry, the petrochemical industry, the strategic planning process, and the importance of corporate governance.