Merged into Core Scientific, ticker now CORZ
XPDI

Completed

Core Scientific

Power & Digital Infrastructure Acquisition Corp.

Sponsors: XPDI Sponsor
Raised
$250M
CIK
1839341
SPAC Ticker
XPDI
Merger
Core Scientific
Merged Ticker
CORZ
Focus
Renewable Energy, Energy
External link: SEC Filings

SPAC Team

Leadership

Theodore J. Brombach serves as our Chairman . Mr. Brombach is a founding partner of XMS Capital Partners, LLC and serves as the firm’s Co-Managing Partner. He is also the Chief Executive Officer of XA Investments LLC, an alternative asset management firm he co-founded. Mr. Brombach is the President and Chief Executive Officer and a Trustee of XAI Octagon Floating Rate & Alternative Income Term Trust (NYSE: XFLT), a closed end fund investing in alternative credit investments. He has over 30 years of investment banking experience in Chicago, New York and London. Prior to founding XMS Capital, Mr. Brombach was a Managing Director and co-head of Midwest Investment Banking at Morgan Stanley. At XMS Capital, he has led numerous M&A and capital raising transactions across a number of industry sectors. Mr. Brombach is a director of RiverWood Bank. Mr. Brombach earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.

Mr. Brombach’s qualifications to serve on our board of directors include his extensive executive, director and leadership experience, including over 30 years in investment banking experience.

Patrick C. Eilers serves as our Chief Executive Officer and is a member of our board of directors . Mr. Eilers is the founder and Managing Partner of EPTP, a private equity firm focused on the energy & power transition, in particular its impact on the electrical grid, with an expertise in (i) renewable energy, (ii) energy storage, technology, equipment & services, and (iii) transitional energy infrastructure. Mr. Eilers has over 20 years of investment experience focused on the energy & power transition. Prior to founding EPTP, Mr. Eilers was a Managing Director on the BlackRock Infrastructure Platform, where he also served as an Investment Committee member for BlackRock’s Global Renewable Power Fund, Global Energy & Power Infrastructure Fund, and Chaired the Energy & Power Private Equity Fund. Prior to joining BlackRock, he also worked at Madison Dearborn Partners overseeing the firm’s energy, power, and chemicals practices for 10 years. Mr. Eilers earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Mechanical Engineering from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Mr. Eilers’ qualifications to serve on our Board include his extensive executive, director and leadership experience in private equity and investment banking, including extensive knowledge relating to the power generation, power infrastructure, transmission, and battery storage industries.

James P. Nygaard, Jr. serves as our Chief Financial Officer . Mr. Nygaard is a Managing Director of XMS Capital Partners, LLC and is responsible for leading M&A execution activities at the firm. With 25 years of investment banking experience, he has completed several strategic transactions, financings, and corporate finance advisory assignments for a diverse range of clients across a variety of industry sectors. Prior to joining XMS Capital at the end of 2007, Mr. Nygaard spent 12 years in the Investment Banking Division of Morgan Stanley where he assumed various roles within the corporate finance, M&A and administrative practices of the firm. While at Morgan Stanley, Mr. Nygaard led coverage and strategic execution efforts for a number of Midwest-based companies, including 3M, Anheuser-Busch, ConAgra Brands, Ford Motor Company, and General Mills.

Mr. Nygaard graduated summa cum laude from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, where he was valedictorian of his department and received Bronze Tablet Honors, the university’s highest academic distinction.

Paul Gaynor will become a member of our board of directors upon the closing of this offering. Mr. Gaynor is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Longroad Energy, a renewable energy company. Prior to co-founding Longroad Energy, Mr. Gaynor served as CEO of First Wind, which he founded in 2004. Mr. Gaynor has also held various roles within Singapore Power, PSG International, GE Capital, and GE Power Systems. Mr. Gaynor earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and an MBA from University of Chicago.

Mr. Gaynor’s qualifications to serve on our board of directors include his extensive executive and leadership experience in the power generation and power infrastructure industries.

Paul Dabbar will become a member of our board of directors upon the closing of this offering. Mr. Dabbar is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Bohr Quantum Technologies, a quantum communications company, and has served in such role since 2021. Prior to Bohr Quantum, Mr. Dabbar served as Under Secretary for Science at the U.S. Department of Energy from 2017 to 2021, managing the operations of, and investing capital at the seventeen U.S. National Laboratories, conducting research and development in energy, technology and the sciences. Mr. Dabbar was previously a Managing Director in investment banking at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., in energy and mergers & acquisitions from 1996 to 2017. Mr. Dabbar was also previously a nuclear submarine officer in the U.S. Navy. Mr. Dabbar earned a Bachelor of Science from the U.S. Naval Academy and an MBA from Columbia University.

Mr. Dabbar’s qualifications to serve on our board of directors include his extensive leadership experience in the communications and energy industry.

Colleen Sullivan will become a member of our board of directors upon the closing of this offering. Ms. Sullivan is Co-Founder and CEO of CMT Digital Holdings LLC and has been a partner with the broader CMT Group since 2013. Ms. Sullivan oversees CMT Digital’s trading, investments, and regulatory initiatives in the crypto assets/blockchain technology space. Ms. Sullivan is also a Co-Founder and Managing Member of Sullivan Wolf Kailus LLC, a boutique law firm based in Chicago that specializes in hedge fund, private equity, venture capital, digital assets, and other alternative investment products. Ms. Sullivan previously practiced law in the Investment Funds and Derivatives group at Sidley Austin LLP and, at age 25, co-founded a company called iOptions Group LLC, which developed hedging and monetization strategies for holders of employee stock options. Ms. Sullivan currently serves on the Board of Directors of Silvergate Bank and on the Advisory Board of the Chamber of Digital Commerce. Ms. Sullivan earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of St. Francis and a Juris Doctorate from Depaul University School of Law.

Ms. Sullivan’s qualifications to serve on our board of directors include her extensive executive and leadership experience in the crypto asset and blockchain technology industries.

Scott Widham will become a member of our board of directors upon the closing of this offering. Mr. Widham brings over 30 years of broad-based management and operations experience in the telecommunications industry. Mr. Widham is currently President of Widham Capital, providing advisory services to strategic and financial institutions making investments in the telecom sector. Previously, he served as CEO of Alpheus Communications, Cobridge Communications, Broadwing Communications, and Capital Cable. Mr. Widham also served as EVP of Corecomm and was a Director at MTV Networks. Mr. Widham earned a B.B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Mr. Widham’s qualifications to serve on our board of directors include his over 30 years of executive, financial and leadership experience in the telecommunications industry.

Benjamin W. Atkins serves on our management team as a Vice President . Mr. Atkins is currently the Chief Capital Officer and co-founder of HODL Ranch Mining Company where he focuses on business development and origination activities. Mr. Atkins co-founded Skybox Datacenters, and is a co-founder and partner of Rugen Street Capital, a holding company for the founders of Skybox Datacenters. Prior to joining HODL Ranch Mining Company, Mr. Atkins served as an equity research analyst at Chilton Capital Management in Houston, Texas as well as an investment analyst at Salient Partners in Houston, Texas. Mr. Atkins earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Texas A&M University.

Jesse Peltan serves on our management team as a Vice President . Mr. Peltan is the Chief Technology Officer and co-founder of HODL Ranch Mining Company. Mr. Peltan also co-founded Autonomous with Mr. Powell and currently serves as the Chief Technology Officer, where he has designed and built multiple ASIC and GPU cryptocurrency mines. Mr. Peltan also leads technical research and development at HODL Ranch Mining Company and has developed solutions for operating cryptocurrency mines in various climates in Texas and developed demand side management strategies to capitalize on the growth in intermittent renewable energy in ERCOT. Prior to leaving his senior year to co-found Autonomous, Mr. Peltan attended the University of Kentucky, where he was a quadruple major in Mathematics, Economics, Philosophy and Environmental Sustainability. Mr. Peltan has been recognized by Forbes 30 under 30 in Energy for his work at HODL Ranch Mining Company.