Nicole Vermeulen

Since a young age I was fascinated by technology, and I was soldering and making electrical kits. This automatically led to do a technical study after high school and while I was unfortunately not accepted for electrical engineering, I started with construction. My passion for kitesurfing probably contributed to being intrigued by wind energy early on in my career, and the reason to pursue my career in the energy sector. I worked on various different technologies, in the traditional oil & gas sector and at coalfired plants, as well as in solar, wind and green hydrogen. I always enjoyed being on the construction sites, and I have for example climbed the wind turbines for inspections in the UK. Delivery of complex projects, in particular in the early phases and being part of innovative projects has motivated me.
I applied for the Marina van Damme Grant in 2022 to use my experience in the energy industry to broaden my impact. With this Grant I want to pursue my ambition to become a successful (non-executive) board member in multiple companies, and as such further contribute to the energy transition in a broader scale. I continue the board program at the only accredited program (at the Institute of Directors in the UK) with the help of this Grant. I am very honoured to be part of the valuable Marina van Damme network and its incredibly inspiring members.