John Risley’s massive, 328-turbine wind energy and hydrogen production facility that he plans to build near St. George’s Bay in Newfoundland is part of what the serial entrepreneur and super-angel describes as the most significant business trend of his career: the global transition to clean energy.

Best known as the co-founder of Clearwater Seafoods, which was sold to a consortium that included Indigenous buyers in 2020 for about $1 billion, Risley’s more recent business plays have included algae specialist Mara Renewables, which last year raised $39.5 million, and CFFI Ventures, his investment fund.

World Energy GH2, of which Risley is the chairman, plans for its Newfoundland project to eventually produce about four gigawatts of electricity along with hydrogen for export to Germany, where it will initially offer an alternative to Russian gas and later a potential means of greening carbon-intensive transportation businesses, including air travel.

“We’re on our way to, hopefully, a zero emissions economy,” said Risley. “The path of getting from here to there is a path that’s going to require trillions of dollars of investment, a huge amount of innovation and a huge amount of risk-taking.”

Speaking at Entrevestor Live, our one-day conference showcasing the Atlantic Canadian startup community, Risley said his goal is also to become the world’s first producer of sustainable aviation fuel at scale. He is planning to produce such a product at a facility in Los Angeles, an exisitng facility that is now being expanded. 

“I love businesses where there is a prospect for multiple winners,” he said. “If you think about many businesses, there’s really only room for one winner.

“The energy transition game, it’s a bit like the current fossil fuel business — there’s multiple businesses succeeding, and I think you will see exactly the same characteristics emerging in the renewable energy business.”

Earlier this month, the Newfoundland and Labrador government delayed granting environmental approval for GH2’s Project Nujio’qonik, asking for more information about the hydrogen plant's potential water use, among other topics. At the time, Risley told media that Project Nujio’qonik’s status as the first such facility to be proposed in Canada means additional scrutiny is par for the course.

Clean energy, though, is only one of two trends Risley expects to shape the economy of the future. The other is artificial intelligence.

“It scares the shit out of me,” he said. “It should scare everybody in this room, because it’s either going to be a huge source of opportunity for you, or it's going to bite you hard in the ass, or both."

Comparing the rise of artificial intelligence tools in business to the advent of electricity, telephones and eventually computers, Risley noted that more recent shifts in the technological paradigm have penetrated global society faster than their earlier counterparts. He expects AI to be among the fastest-moving changes yet, citing the number of potential AI deals many VCs say are currently crossing their desks.

“I remember walking around with a mobile phone on my back, a big aerial sticking in the air, and the kids laughing at me back in the 1980s,” recalled Risley. “And so that took sort of 20 years to emerge, right? The internet took what, 10 or 15 years?

“AI is not going to take 10 or 15 years."