Introducing the Honorary Consuls of Finland: Frank Donnelly, Texas
In this series, we highlight the important work done by our honorary consuls around the 35 States in our jurisdictional area. Frank Donnelly, the honorary consul in Houston, Texas, has an impressive career with Finnish marine and energy company Wärtsilä. In the interview, he shares his thoughts on the rapidly changing clean energy market in the US, molded by COVID-19, as well as his ideas of Finnish businesses’ strengths in the Lone Star State.
Frank Donnelly, Honorary Consul of Finland in Houston, Texas
- Education: Rice University – BA Math Science
- Profession: Consultant – Energy & Power Development
- Favorite thing about Finland: I have most enjoyed the beautiful and diverse Finnish outdoors, from the arctic to the archipelago: skiing, hiking, biking, fishing and hunting, and finishing the day with a smoke sauna and dinner of whitefish.
You have a long and impressive career history at Wärtsilä, a Finnish company providing smart technologies and complete lifecycle solutions for marine and energy markets. How did you initially get introduced to the company and what made you stay for over two decades?
I was first introduced to Wärtsilä in the early 1980’s as a new supplier of medium-speed engines to the offshore. At that time, I was running the North America operations of Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques (SACM), the French diesel engine manufacturer. At SACM, we increasingly competed with Wärtsilä for marine and power generation business. But, Wärtsilä quickly stepped ahead with an innovative introduction of the “First Real Heavy Fuel Engine”. The Wärtsilä Heavy Fuel Engine was capable of reliably and efficiently burning less expensive heavy fuel oil (bunker oil) instead of the traditional diesel fuel. Heavy fuel operation was a revolution for medium-speed engines and the offshore/marine/power generation markets. With this innovation, Wärtsilä changed market expectations and was propelled to success. In 1989, Wärtsilä purchased SACM and I became a Wärtsilä employee, opening the company' first Houston office.
Over the next two decades, Wärtsilä continued to expand its engine leadership position with a steady stream of innovative energy solutions, including turnkey power plants, gas and dual-fuel engines, LNG-to-Power facilities, modular designs, and energy storage. The combination of innovation and can-do spirit made Wärtsilä an inspiring place to work and led to our leadership position with US municipal utilities. Over the two decades with Wärtsilä, I had the pleasure of more than 200 visits to Finland with many more visits and relocations of Finnish colleagues to Houston. We never let the distance between us become an obstacle to business.
In the light of your Wärtsilä background and current position as the Honorary Consul of Finland in Houston, Texas, where do you see the biggest strengths of Finnish business in Texas?
Wärtsilä’s success in the U.S. has shown that there is an appreciation for Finnish innovation, persistence, and service. I have found openness in Texas for new ideas and straightforward business dealings. Finland has innovation in many sectors of interest in Texas, such as energy, medical, renewables, education, engineering, software, music, and film.
Considering your knowledge of the US energy industry and its manufacturing value chains, what would you highlight as Finland’s biggest strengths or competitive advantages within clean energy space?
Finland has great strengths in innovation and the can-do spirit that Finns bring to the table. The US clean energy space is prime for introduction of innovation in products and services, including areas of sustainable cities, software, wind, solar, hydrogen, fuel cells, energy storage, and demand-side management. The US clean energy market is quite large and growing. Companies are in search of new ideas to differentiate their business models. Finnish innovation has a real opportunity to thrive here.
How do you see the COVID-19 crisis affecting sustainable development and renewable energy markets in the US both short and long term?
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, renewable energy development was already gaining strength in the US. And the recent introduction of competitive energy storage to the wind and solar mix has further stimulated the renewable market. The COVID-19 crisis has caused a dramatic decline in oil and gas demand in the power generation and transportation sectors. The resulting impact has been a significant blow to the traditional US oil and gas industry, giving a further boost toward sustainability. In fact, sustainable development and renewable energy have continued to grow during the crisis and the future looks even brighter. Texas has just exceeded 27 GW of wind power, making it the world’s fifth-largest wind power producer. While Texas solar power is in its infancy, it is set to double in 2020 and 2021.
As the state with the second-largest economy in the US, what do you see as the biggest business opportunities rising during and after the crisis in Texas and how could Finland address this demand?
Texas is known for its leadership in:
- Oil & Gas – world’s energy capital
- Wind Power – fifth largest in world
- Space – NASA Johnson Space Center, SpaceX, and Blue Origin
- Medical – Houston Medical Center – the largest in world
- Cattle Production – largest in the US
Except for Oil & Gas, these segments have been buoyant during the crisis and should continue strong for years to come. While these business segments could be key targets for Finnish innovation, many other sectors should also be of interest, like education, music, film, and so forth.
South by Southwest (SXSW) – a leading festival for creative and technology industries held annually in Austin, Texas – got canceled this year. How has this impacted Austin and its surrounding areas, and how do you see the festival developing in the coming years?
The cancellation of SXSW was a disaster for Austin and disappointment for the State. The 2019 SXSW festival generated $355 MUSD and 417,000 visitors in the Austin community. Details of a 2021 SXSW festival are not yet clear. I am still hopeful for 2021. No doubt, once COVID-19 is under control there will be future SXSW festivals.
What are the challenges you would be able to support Finnish companies with and what type of companies would you encourage to contact you?
While there is opportunity for innovation in products and services, the path to success will take perseverance and patience. For Finnish companies with innovation, Texas is a good place to start. There are active innovation incubators in Houston, Austin, and Dallas that are looking to assist and invest in new products and services. Rice University in Houston just received a grant for $100 MUSD for a new research hub to engineer new technologies and innovative materials. This materials research hub will attract companies from around the world. I would encourage any Finnish company that has innovative technologies or services in medical, engineering, oil & gas, chemicals, natural resources, renewables, and space to consider visiting Houston to network with potential investors, collaborators, and customers.
Honorary consulates
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