Victor Velar
Victor Velar holds a degree in Civil Industrial Electrical Engineering from Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile. From 2000 to 2015, he directed Latin American transmission studies at ENDESA-ENEL, and since 2015 he has led the Electrical Studies and Real-Time Simulation Laboratory at CEN, where he is Deputy Manager of Studies and Real-Time Simulation. He currently works on the integration of inverter-based resources into the Chilean power system, with emphasis on grid-forming verification, EMT studies, HIL testing, and system strength assessment under high renewable penetration. He has contributed to the development of Chilean regulation and grid code on these matters.
Victor loves to travel and this is a hobby that he shares with his wife.
Paul Hodges
Paul Hodges is a Principal Engineer in the System Security department at Tampa Electric where he has been responsible for relay settings and working to meet NERC standards for 14 years. He has been involved in investigating operations/mis-operations for the last 4 and a half years. Before that he worked in a variety of planning and operations positions at Tampa Electric starting 1988, including System Planning and Operations, Distribution Operations and Substation Operations. He received a BS in Computer Engineering & BA in Mathematics (1990) and a MS in Engineering from the University of South Florida in 2008. He is a P.E. in the state of Florida.
Paul loves nature and beautiful scenery. In his leisure time, he enjoys biking.
Matt Lewis
Matt Lewis joined the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) on March 24, 2014, and currently serves as the Manager of Event Analysis and previously served as the Manager of Training and Education. He retired with over twenty-five years of service as a U.S. Army officer. Matt served in a variety of leadership and staff positions in the fields of operations, special weapons effects and response, technical intelligence, and joint exercises/training. During his military service, he participated in combat tours in Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. Matt has a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and a Master of Science in Applied Physics from the Air Force Institute of Technology.
Matt enjoys wood turning as a hobby. He considers himself an artisan in the making, preferring to make wooden items on a lathe that are useful in daily life, always accompanied by his photography equipment.
Sylvie Perrin
Sylvie Perrin is Deputy Director of R&D at RTE, where she previously served as Director of Stability Processes Transformation and Manager of the Voltage, Stability, and Protections Department. Her main challenge will be to work on the strategy of the R&D for the next years, going from Social Sciences to asset management and dynamic behavior of the grid. She is president of the French CIGRE Women in Energy group. Before joining RTE, she was Deputy Head of the Power Systems and Energy Markets Department at EDF Lab R&D, focusing on energy transition, regulation, market design, and grid integration of distributed resources. She also led teams at an Energy Transition Institute on innovative photovoltaic technologies. Her career reflects expertise in innovation, grid stability, and energy transition.
She loves nature and in her leisure time she enjoys horse riding.
