Joseph Gasik
About Joseph Gasik
Joseph “Joe” Gasik, 50, has served as Chief Operating Officer and Corporate Secretary of Houston American Energy Corp. since July 1, 2025, following HUSA’s share exchange with Abundia Global Impact Group; he is based in Chicago . He is a partner and co-founder of Abundia Financial, with prior large-scale execution roles at GE Transportation (governance of >200 IT integration projects for an $8B merger), and strategy/performance leadership at Musanada (scaled from 30 to >500 employees; $27B project portfolio); he holds an MBA (Notre Dame), MS (Stevens Institute of Technology), and BBA (University of Delaware) . Company performance prior to his tenure showed significant TSR drawdown and net losses, underscoring a pivot under the Abundia-led change-of-control in 2025 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abundia Financial, LLC | Partner & Managing Member | Since Mar 2019 | Co-founded investor/development platform; provided all AGIG seed funding |
| Abundia Global Impact Group (AGIG) | Chief Operating Officer | Since Feb 2021 | Oversaw scale-up ops, co-led fundraising, commercial agreements, strategic partnerships and asset development |
| GE Transportation (Wabtec merger) | Program Manager & Governance Leader | 2019–2021 | Designed and implemented governance framework for >200 integration projects in $8B Fortune 500 merger |
| Musanada (Abu Dhabi gov’t entity) | Head of Strategy & Performance | 2009–2018 | Drove Balanced Scorecard execution; scaled company from 30 to >500 employees; portfolio to $27B public infrastructure |
| Ministry of Interior (Saudi Arabia) | Consultant | Not disclosed (prior) | Advisory work to senior leadership |
| UBS Wealth Management (U.S.) | Role not disclosed | Not disclosed (prior) | Finance/wealth management experience |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poseidon Plastics | Board member | Current (years not disclosed) | Plastics recycling; aligns with low-carbon fuels/chemicals strategy |
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Detail |
|---|---|
| Base Salary | $30,000 per month initial compensation as COO (effective July 1, 2025) |
| Benefits | Not disclosed |
| Retirement/Pension | Company does not maintain retirement plans for executives/employees |
| Indemnification | Standard officer indemnification and advancement agreement; broad coverage to fullest extent of Delaware law |
| Clawback Policy | Board-adopted clawback for performance-based cash/equity upon restatements (excess compensation subject to recoupment) |
| Anti-Hedging | Directors and executive officers prohibited from hedging transactions (puts, calls, short sales) in HUSA securities |
Performance Compensation
| Incentive Type | Metric(s) | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Bonus (COO) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Equity Awards | Not disclosed | — | — | — | — | — |
Notes:
- Equity incentive plans exist (2008, 2017, 2021, 2025) with authorized shares; however, no specific awards to Gasik have been disclosed to date .
- Timing policies avoid grant manipulation around MNPI; options granted at fair market price on grant date .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Direct HUSA ownership | As of Nov 13, 2025, no shares reported as beneficially owned for “Joseph Gasik, Chief Operating Officer” in the proxy’s management table (less than 1% or none within 60 days) . |
| Indirect/control interests | Abundia Financial, LLC owned 80.9% of outstanding shares; managers include Edward Gillespie, Joseph Gasik, and Kevin Bower; they may be deemed to have shared voting/investment discretion, but each disclaims beneficial ownership except to the extent of pecuniary interest . |
| Shares pledged | Not disclosed |
| Ownership guidelines | Not disclosed |
| Anti-hedging | Prohibition on hedging by insiders (alignment safeguard) |
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail |
|---|---|
| Start Date | July 1, 2025 (appointment upon Share Exchange closing) |
| Title | Chief Operating Officer and Secretary |
| Contract Term | No employment agreement disclosed; appointed with initial compensation terms |
| Severance | Not disclosed |
| Change-of-Control | Not disclosed for Gasik; corporate-level CoC described for legacy PIC plan (assumption or royalty assignment), but unrelated to current COO terms |
| Non-Compete/Non-Solicit | Not disclosed |
| Garden Leave | Not disclosed |
| Post-Term Consulting | Not disclosed |
Company Performance (pre-tenure context)
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value of $100 investment (TSR) | $140.56 | $25.17 | $9.79 |
| Net Income (Loss) (USD millions) | $(0.74) | $(3.21) | $(8.22) |
Note: These figures reflect performance before Gasik’s July 2025 appointment; they contextualize the strategic reset under Abundia’s change-of-control in 2025 .
Compensation Committee Analysis
- Composition: Compensation Committee members Mathew Henninger (Chair) and Robert Bailey (independent directors) .
- Meetings: One meeting held during FY 2024 (pre-Abundia transaction) .
- Consultant usage: Not disclosed .
- Charter: Written charter governs annual compensation and equity programs; available at corporate governance site .
Governance and Control Context
- Change-of-Control: On July 1, 2025, HUSA acquired all AGIG units; immediately after, Abundia Financial held 84.6% and BFH 10.4% direct (plus 46.3% indirect via Abundia), establishing control; total exchange equity value ≈$331M (stock issuance) .
- Auditor transition and internal control disclosures: Dismissed prior auditors; material weaknesses acknowledged historically; CBIZ appointed Oct 2, 2025 .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: As of the latest proxy, Gasik has no disclosed direct HUSA share ownership; alignment appears primarily via his managerial role at Abundia Financial, which controls 80.9%—with beneficial ownership disclaimed except for pecuniary interest . Lack of disclosed RSUs/options/PSUs for Gasik suggests current pay skewed toward fixed cash with discretionary bonus, reducing near-term equity-driven alignment until awards are granted .
- Retention risk: No employment agreement or severance/CoC terms disclosed for Gasik; at-will-like setup with monthly base and bonus opportunity could imply moderate retention risk versus peers with multi-year contracts and defined severance . Robust indemnification, clawback, and anti-hedging policies are in place, supporting governance hygiene without enhancing retention per se .
- Trading overhang: Abundia Financial’s controlling stake (80.9%) creates a structural overhang and potential future supply; as a manager of Abundia Financial, Gasik may share voting/investment discretion (disclaimed), highlighting control dynamics rather than insider selling signals from him personally .
- Execution focus: Gasik’s track record in large-scale integrations and strategic program delivery aligns with HUSA’s post-transaction pivot to low-carbon fuels and recycling technologies; execution on projects and financing will be the primary lever to re-rate TSR versus pre-2025 declines .