Shark Tank investor goes nuclear

Former Shark Tank investor Steve Baxter says the development of a nuclear energy sector in Australia will give us decades of safe and reliable baseload power.

Former Shark Tank investor Steve Baxter has thrown his weight behind Opposition calls for the development of a nuclear energy sector in Australia.

Baxter, who has just returned from the NRL double header in Las Vegas, tells your diarist that nuclear energy is a great idea, providing centuries of safe baseload power to the power grid. Baxter’s support comes as the Coalition works on a plan that is likely to include next-generation large-scale nuclear reactors – not just small-modular reactors (SMRs).

“Nuclear power is the safest type of energy generation by far,” says the Queensland-based tech entrepreneur. “You just don’t build them at sea level in an earthquake zone like Japan did.” He said in addition to small modular reactors, larger more traditional nuclear reactors also should be considered as part of the energy mix.

“SMRs have not been developed to any great extent commercially, but I hope they work out,” says Baxter, whose latest project is a defence focused venture capital fund called ‘Beaten Zone’. “The larger reactors can be built and operate safely for 80 years.”

Australian investor and entrepreneur Steve Baxter

NEW HATS

Peter Devenish-Meares has handed over the role of chair at St John Ambulance to Brisbane businesswoman Judy Morgan.

Devenish-Meares, whose varied career has included stints as an army and police chaplain as well as accountant and banker, completed three terms at St John, during which time the organisation expanded into indigenous ophthalmic care and mental health training for the workplace. Aside from chaplaincy duties, he tells City Beat he is now setting his sights on new roles in both business and charity. “I will juggle army and police chaplaincy work with board and corporate governance, PTSD research and homeless chaplaincy,” Devenish-Meares says. “Life is full.” The busy reverend also has recently finished three years as an adjunct professor in business at QUT. Morgan has 20 years’ experience at major national organisations including Toll Group and RSL Care.

LEGAL MOVES

Workplace lawyer Patrick Turner has been appointed principal and the new head of Maurice Blackburn’s Queensland employment and industrial law practice. The appointment caps a meteoric rise for Turner, who joined Maurice Blackburn Lawyers a decade ago.

In 2017, Turner received a Lawyers Weekly Top 30 lawyers under 30 award while last year, he was recognised in Doyle’s Guide as a leading employment lawyer in Queensland. Turner’s career highlights include recovering nearly $6 million for underpaid 7-Eleven workers who had been systematically exploited.

“When people are dismissed, discriminated against, bullied or otherwise mistreated in the course of their employment, this can pose a serious threat to their financial state and mental health,” Turner says. He takes over from Giri Sivaraman, who was appointed as the next Race Discrimination Commissioner in early February.

HIGH TECH

ATech managing director Sarah-Jane Peterschlingmann will serve as vice chair of the Queensland branch of the Australian Computer Society (ACS) for the next year.

She has previously held seats on the CQUniversity information and communications technology advisory board as well as the Women in Technology executive committee.

Starting as a web developer, Peterschlingmann grew ATech from humble beginnings to an award-winning company with multi-million dollar revenues delivering cloud hosting and web development for mission critical websites.

Sarah-Jane Peterschlingmann from ATech