Stardust Power Inc., a development-stage American manufacturer of battery-grade lithium products, is pleased to announce the appointment of Udaychandra (Uday) Devasper as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer. In addition, Michael Circelli joins Stardust as Senior Project Director, who will lead the development of Stardust Power’s Oklahoma operations.
“We are pleased to welcome Uday to Stardust Power and to lead us through our next phase of growth as we head towards our public listing,” said Roshan Pujari, CEO of Stardust Power. “Uday is an experienced finance professional with an impressive track record of driving growth and delivering results, who will ensure that Stardust Power continues to thrive in the dynamic landscape of the clean energy industry once it is publicly traded.”
In his role as CFO, Mr. Devasper is responsible for leading and developing the finance and accounting functions while assisting the CEO in executing strategy, and financing. Mr. Devasper has over 20 years of experience in finance and accounting and has demonstrated expertise and deep knowledge in leading projects and assisting companies through multiple transactions.
Prior to joining Stardust Power, Mr. Devasper was part of the founding team and Partner at Effectus Group. At this boutique national accounting advisory firm, he was involved in developing the business, hiring and resource management, as well as leading the nationwide technical accounting advisory practice, which included the clean energy industry. Prior to his time at Effectus, he held positions at KPMG LLP, Synopsys, Inc. and Echelon Corporation. He is a licensed CPA in California, a licensed Chartered Accountant (CA) from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, and a graduate of Mumbai University in India, with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Stardust Power also announced the addition of Michael Circelli to the management team. “We are excited to have Michael join the team and have him lead the development of our lithium production facility located in Southside Industrial Park, Muskogee, Oklahoma,” said Mr. Pujari. “Michael is an outstanding and experienced engineer and project manager and will help us in meeting our goals and executing our strategy to become one of the largest lithium refineries in the United States.”
As Senior Project Director, Mr. Circelli will oversee the development and rollout of the Company’s Oklahoma lithium production facility. Mr. Circelli is a seasoned professional engineer and a graduate of Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Before Stardust, he held senior and corporate positions at Bantrel/Bechtel, SNC Lavalin, Lycopodium and Worley in the Minerals and Metallurgy sector and, most recently, in the electrification and battery value chain sector. He has extensive experience in the resource and energy sectors and has recently executed lithium-based projects for A1 Lithium, Berkshire Hathaway Energy and Renewables and Rio Tinto.
Mr. Circelli will work alongside Pablo Cortegoso, Co-Founder and designated Chief Technical Officer who leads the technical team. Mr. Cortegoso brings over a decade of experience in civil and mining projects, specializing in lithium, having previously worked with Aurora Lithium and SRK Consulting. These recent hires bring strategic and operational bench strength to the Stardust Power team at a critical time in the company’s growth trajectory.
