Experienced technology and energy market leaders appointed as Interim CEO and Chair of British ground source heat pump manufacturer, Kensa
Kensa is pleased to announce the appointment of James Priestley as Interim CEO and Jo Butlin as Chair of the Board, supporting the company’s plans to deliver low carbon heat to thousands of homes. James Priestley replaces Tamsin Lishman, and Jo Butlin succeeds Paul Donovan, who is relocating internationally.
James is an engineer by training and highly experienced technology and manufacturing leader, having worked internationally across a breadth of industries. Most recently, he spent eight years in the circular economy as Managing Director at Renewi and CEO at ENVA, with previous roles including RGIS, Tesco, British Airways and Ford.
Commenting on joining Kensa, James Priestley, said:
“This is an exciting moment to join Kensa. With the Future Homes Standard on the cusp of being implemented, and an exciting product roadmap to take to market, Kensa is well positioned for growth.”
Jo has worked in the Energy sector for most of her career and now holds a portfolio of Non Executive roles. In addition to Kensa she leads the Boards for Thrive Renewables plc and The Energy Consortium (Energy and Education) Ltd and sits on the Board of SmartestEnergy Ltd and REGEN Ltd. She is also a Founder and Director of the Women’s Utilities Network.
New Chair of the Board, Jo Butlin, said:
“I’m delighted to become Chair of Kensa’s Board, supporting its talented team as we accelerate the transition to low-carbon heating and deliver impactful, scalable solutions for communities across the UK.”
Kensa supporting the transition to low carbon heating in 2026
Despite a challenging year marked by delays to the Future Homes Standard and Warm Homes Plan, and an internal restructure, Kensa enters 2026 with momentum. The business has completed drilling on its landmark social housing retrofit project with Renfrewshire Council, is due to start on site in the new year on a major Social Housing Fund retrofit project, while its partnership with GTC in the new-build market continues to accelerate, with a significant pipeline secured ahead of the implementation of the Future Homes Standard. Kensa will also announce new products as part of its 2026 product roadmap, bringing next-generation, higher-efficiency ground source heat pumps to customers.
In other senior leadership team changes, Kensa is delighted to welcome new Finance Director, Wayne Lee, who joined the business in November from TDK-Lambda UK (Part of TDK Corporation).
