
Meet Our Team
EXECUTIVE TEAM
Georg Veit
Chairman of the Board
Georg Veit
Chairman of the Board
Between 2009 and 2012, Georg gathered solar development experience in the European and U.S. West Coast markets. In 2012, he established a team of industry professionals and raised the necessary capital to develop utility-scale systems, which led to the founding of Geenex Solar. By 2014, Geenex had already developed and built its first 20 MW project in Halifax County, North Carolina. Under his leadership, Geenex was one of the first utility-scale solar developers to enter the PJM marketplace, filing its first project in 2014.
Georg’s strategic vision, strong leadership and his ability to shift quickly in an ever-changing environment, has led to the continued growth of Geenex over the last decade. With a team of 26+ employees across five states and a project pipeline of over 10 GW, Geenex has became a leading developer in the Southeast and Midwest.
As CEO of Geenex from 2012 to 2021, Georg was the driving force behind the company’s development, growth and success. In addition to his strategic leadership, Georg led all major contract negotiations for Geenex. In his current role as Chairman, Geenex will continue to benefit from his experience and deep knowledge of the renewable energy market.
Georg also serves as Chairman of the Board of the non-profit Center for Energy Education. He holds a master’s degree in Philosophy from the Freie Universität in Berlin, Germany.
Sarah Hetznecker
Chief Executive Officer
Sarah Hetznecker
Chief Executive Officer
Sarah Hetznecker joined Geenex Solar as CEO in 2021 bringing with her more than 20 years of experience in the renewable energy sector. As a strategic and visionary leader in renewable energy, Sarah’s executive career has spanned the renewable energy project development value chain, from developer, to EPC provider to lender to owner-operator. Sarah brings unique insights and experience into her role at Geenex. Her leadership has been honed through the oversight of operations, business development and transformation, financial analysis, and project/program development and management. Prior to joining Geenex, Sarah was President of PSEG Solar Source, a subsidiary of PSEG Power. In that role, she oversaw the development of offshore wind lease assets and she was responsible for the unregulated utility-scale solar business, which developed, owned and operated 500 MW of facilities.
An early entrant to renewable energy, Sarah co-founded a solar energy development company in 2000 and sold it to a global renewable energy company in 2007. Prior to joining PSEG, she served as a Senior Management Consultant with the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office participating in financing and construction monitoring for over 2 GWs of utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) and concentrating solar power (CSP) energy projects. Sarah also served as Development Director for Conergy US. Sarah holds an MBA from Temple University Fox School of Business and a BS in Geology from Temple University. She sits on the Board of the PA Energy Development Authority and was the Chair of the PA Climate Advisory Committee which developed the state’s Climate Change Action Plan.
Juergen Fehr
Managing Director
Juergen Fehr
Managing Director
Juergen Fehr, Managing Director for Geenex Solar, has more than 20 years of renewable energy industry experience. Prior to joining Geenex, Juergen worked for an international solar photovoltaic panel manufacturer as president and chief executive officer. Under his leadership, the company established their first U.S. entity for manufacturing and distribution in North America. As Managing Director for Geenex, Juergen manages all aspects necessary to operate a successful organization that has employees and partners on both coasts and abroad. His wide range of experience in the solar industry enables him to play a key role in the leadership of the Geenex team. Juergen, who holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering and Business Administration (eidg.dipl.BF), is also very involved in Geenex’s community outreach for their local utility-scale projects.
Christopher Robotham
Director of Legal & Finance
Christopher Robotham
Director of Legal & Finance
Christopher’s strong knowledge base in environmental and energy policy, led to him join Geenex in 2012, with an initial focus on project development, evaluation, and finance. Before joining Geenex, he completed his master’s Degree in Political Science in Berlin Germany before working for the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) in Nyon, Switzerland.
Along with 9 years’ experience across the project development and divestment cycle, he brings strong organizational leadership and finance management skills to the Geenex team. Equally at ease working in English, German and French, Christopher additionally plays an important role in managing US and international partner relationships for Geenex.
Walter Putnam Jr.
Chief Operating Officer
Walter Putnam
Chief Operating Officer
Walter Putnam is driven by a passion to build profitable and environmentally conscious businesses. Joining Geenex in 2013, his direct involvement and leadership supported Geenex Solar’s exponential growth of utility-scale development assets across the Eastern US. In 2020, Walter championed the continued growth of Geenex as the team doubled in size and was promoted to COO. He takes pride in Geenex’ holistic development philosophy; which centers on collaborating with our many partners and project stakeholders and culminates in long-lasting projects where all parties benefit.
Prior to working with Geenex, Walter was a founding partner at Shift Equity which focused on renewable energy project feasibility and environmental commodities. He is a native North Carolinian and a graduate of Appalachian State University, where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Appropriate Technology and a minor in Entrepreneurship.