Our leadership team

Andre Proulx

Executive Chairman

Mr. André Proulx, President and Founder of RéSolve Énergie, is a well-known entrepreneur in the Quebec business community, particularly in the energy sector. He is the founder of Petrolia, the company that discovered a massive oil deposit on Anticosti Island, a natural gas deposit in Gaspésie currently under development, and the first commercially viable oil field in Quebec. Mr. André Proulx, President and Founder of RéSolve Énergie, is a well-known entrepreneur in the Quebec business community, particularly in the energy sector. He is the founder of Petrolia, the company that discovered a massive oil deposit on Anticosti Island, a natural gas deposit in Gaspésie currently under development, and the first commercially viable oil field in Quebec. He has listed three companies on the Toronto Stock Exchange and has served on the boards of six publicly traded companies. Moreover, he received the Hector Authier Award in 2014 (as a developer) and the Oil Entrepreneurship Award in 2013.

Ian C. Peres, CPA, CA

President & CEO

Mr. Peres is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CA) formerly with Deloitte, with over 30 years of capital markets experience in executive and board level positions across several public companies having raised over $500 million in various financings. He is the founder and former CFO and Director of Energy Fuels (UUUU: EFR), now a mid tier uranium producer in the US Midwest. Mr. Peres most recently ran Moneta Gold (TSE: ME), now Stllar Gold (TSE: STLR), as President & CEO and Director for 13 years where the NI 43-101 gold resource inventory was increased to over 9 million ounces of gold (from 142,000 ounces) in the world class gold mining camp in Timmins, Ontario.

Xavier Duret, PhD

Chief Technology Officer

Dr. Xavier Duret earned a Master’s degree in Engineering from the École Nationale Supérieure des Technologies et Industries du Bois (ENSTIB, Épinal, France) and a Research Master’s in Wood and Fiber Sciences from the University of Lorraine (Nancy, France) in 2008. He continued his academic training with a Ph.D. in Wood and Fiber Sciences at the University of Lorraine, under the supervision of Professor Philippe Gérardin, Director of LERMAB (Laboratory for Studies and Research on Wood), with CRITT Bois as an industrial partner. His doctoral research focused on the liquefaction of spruce bark to produce a thermosetting resin intended for wood preservation.

Dr. Duret worked for the Regional Center for Innovation and Technology Transfer in the Wood Industries (CRITT Bois) as a Research and Development Project Manager beginning in 2013. He participated in several research and industrial projects such as furfural production from wood, cellulose-based insulation from new sources, and wood waste sorting using infrared spectroscopy, among others.

In January 2015, he joined the Industrial Research Chair on Cellulosic Ethanol and Bioproducts (CRIEC-B). He led the cellulose conversion platform and developed the RéSolve technology for producing second-generation ethanol and lignin pellets. To this end, he optimized the process and developed the pilot facilities currently used by RéSolve Énergie.

Since November 2018, he has served as Chief Technology Officer at ReSolve Energy, with the mission of scaling up and transferring ReSolve technology to full-scale commercial production. His skills, knowledge, and expertise are therefore perfectly aligned with the project, enabling him to ensure the continued technological development and implementation.

Byron D’Silva, CPA, CA

Chief Financial Officer

Mr. D’Silva is a Chartered Professional Accountant with more than 25 years of experience across financial reporting, internal and external audit, and risk management, known for his strategic insight and ability to lead in complex, fast-evolving environments. Mr. D’Silva spent a decade at KPMG, where he developed expertise in assurance and advisory services, laying the foundation for a career defined by both technical excellence and leadership. He most recently held the role of Senior Director at Royal Bank of Canada, over a tenure of 15 years, across regulatory integration, compliance, and operational risk management including executing enterprise-wide initiatives, driving alignment between regulatory expectations and business objectives, and strengthening sustainable growth through effective governance.

Martin Fredette

Vice President, Operations

Martin Fredette, CEO of Mécanique Industrielle MF since 2009, an industry leading company specializing in the maintenance, planning, development and implementation of large-scale industrial projects. Leader in innovation and creativity supported by a solid team which has positioned the company as an industry expert.