BLUE OAK ENERGY, LLC
SACRAMENTO, CA

Danny Lee, PhD is the Senior Vice President of Blue Oak Energy. Danny has been with Blue Oak since 2006 when he started as a Project Engineer. Since then, he has worn a myriad of hats, ranging from Engineering Manager to VP of Sales Development. As Senior Vice President, he directs all sales and development activities for Blue Oak Energy and specializes in mechanical design, process control and the all-important art of relationship building. Danny earned his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from UC Davis and has a fantastic family that spans several states and countries. Ryan Zahner, PE is the VP of Operations for Blue Oak Energy. He started with Blue Oak in 2008 as a Project Engineer. Since then, he progressed from Director of Engineering and Construction to his current position. With more than 20 years of engineering, design, testing and management at alternative energy companies, Ryan is a key component to our success. He holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Kansas State University and is a Licensed Professional Engineer. In his spare time, his small solar- powered Northern California walnut orchard keeps his bicycling and peak bagging habits in check. Cherie Garret, CPA is the VP of Finance here at Blue Oak Energy. She has over 20 years of experience in financial management and leadership in the public, construction and renewable energy sectors. In her current position, she oversees all activities and polices related to treasury and finance for Blue Oak. Cherie received a BS in Accounting from Upper Iowa University; although originally from Alaska, she loves the warmer climate found in the California central valley. Kelly Birkes, PE is the Director of Civil Engineering for Blue Oak Energy. With more than 30 years in land development and civil engineering, he operates our civil engineering team and handles the day-to-day management for our highly complex civil engineering efforts. He received a BS in Civil Engineering from California State University Chico  and has engineering management experience extending for more than two decades of his professional career. In Kelly’s spare time, he can usually be found at the family “ranch” that he and his wife built where they and their daughters enjoy tending to their garden, horses and nice mix of other livestock (pets). Blue Oak Energy is a nationally recognized solar engineering services leader, proud to have supported the delivery of more than 2.4GW of solar projects globally. We bring more than a decade of experience and a great deal of passion for clean energy solutions to our work, focusing on engineering for utility scale and commercial/industrial scale solar customers. Experience, integrity, and focus drive our team and have enabled us to be a part of some of the most awesome solar projects and solar portfolios in the world. As a boutique engineering shop exclusively serving solar PV and solar-plus-storage customers, we understand the specific needs of renewable energy developers and asset owners. Whether it’s Greenfield development support or acquisition due diligence, Blue Oak Energy engineers, analysts and design managers have extensive real-world project experience in risk assessment, site selection, production optimization and cost analysis. requires expertise that only an experienced firm can deliver.  Spanning civil, electrical, and structural disciplines, solar design work is complex and requires a highly collaborative approach that defines the Blue Oak way. From feasibility studies, risk mitigation and array design–to tech comparisons, foundation design, structural analysis, geotech management and permitting–we've got you.