Wednesday 9th September 2015

Wind Watch

Wind Watch is published every Monday and Friday.

In the meantime, here is the latest in a regular series of Q&As profiling our members. Interested in being profiled in future? Please contact Richard Heap, editor or Joe Gulliver, membership manager.

Name: Dominic Szanto

Job: Director, Renewable Energy Capital

Company: JLL

How long have you worked in renewables?
I began my career in energy storage and moved into wind in 2006 when I joined the commercial team of RWE Innogy in their dedicated renewables division. Subsequently, I moved on to head up all of RWE Innogy’s UK and offshore wind M&A activities. In April 2015 I moved to JLL to head up a new offshore wind advisory function.

In ten words or fewer, what does your firm do?
M&A, debt and equity fundraising and financial advisory across renewables.

In which markets do you see the biggest opportunities?
Given sufficient clarity and support, offshore wind in the UK is still a potentially huge market. Even if future growth is limited, there will still be opportunities for consolidation of assets to the ‘lowest cost of capital’, as we have seen in the onshore market, with utilities and developers looking to take more of an asset management role.

Away from the UK, the Dutch auctions are well-structured and will be highly competed and if the USA market takes off, it could provide huge opportunity.

What is the biggest challenge for wind? How would you fix it?
It’s hard to get away from the fact that UK onshore faces challenges both to the levels of subsidy and the success of planning.

Offshore, the challenge is whether developers and investors can trust the Government not to make further retrospective changes which affect the sector: Levy Exemption Certificates have already been removed and projects like Galloper and Rampion would not be immune from changes to the Renewables Obligation.

DECC urgently needs to provide a clear long-term vision for the sector and provide clarity on Contracts for Difference timetables and budgets. It would also be nice to see the same level of planning support for wind as fracking will allegedly receive.

What do you enjoy most about working in wind?
Because of my focus on offshore wind, I have witnessed the many challenges associated with that sector: supply chain shortages, technical problems and lack of finance, all of which the industry has solved, mainly by those companies that believed offshore wind had a strong future. I have been delighted to see offshore wind emerge as a true mature asset class.

There will doubtless be new challenges to come, but I am now confident that they will be solvable.

Why did you join A Word About Wind?
I was told the drinks evenings are unmissable!

Wind Watch

Wind Watch is published every Monday and Friday.

In the meantime, here is the latest in a regular series of Q&As profiling our members. Interested in being profiled in future? Please contact Richard Heap, editor or Joe Gulliver, membership manager.

Name: Dominic Szanto

Job: Director, Renewable Energy Capital

Company: JLL

How long have you worked in renewables?
I began my career in energy storage and moved into wind in 2006 when I joined the commercial team of RWE Innogy in their dedicated renewables division. Subsequently, I moved on to head up all of RWE Innogy’s UK and offshore wind M&A activities. In April 2015 I moved to JLL to head up a new offshore wind advisory function.

In ten words or fewer, what does your firm do?
M&A, debt and equity fundraising and financial advisory across renewables.

In which markets do you see the biggest opportunities?
Given sufficient clarity and support, offshore wind in the UK is still a potentially huge market. Even if future growth is limited, there will still be opportunities for consolidation of assets to the ‘lowest cost of capital’, as we have seen in the onshore market, with utilities and developers looking to take more of an asset management role.

Away from the UK, the Dutch auctions are well-structured and will be highly competed and if the USA market takes off, it could provide huge opportunity.

What is the biggest challenge for wind? How would you fix it?
It’s hard to get away from the fact that UK onshore faces challenges both to the levels of subsidy and the success of planning.

Offshore, the challenge is whether developers and investors can trust the Government not to make further retrospective changes which affect the sector: Levy Exemption Certificates have already been removed and projects like Galloper and Rampion would not be immune from changes to the Renewables Obligation.

DECC urgently needs to provide a clear long-term vision for the sector and provide clarity on Contracts for Difference timetables and budgets. It would also be nice to see the same level of planning support for wind as fracking will allegedly receive.

What do you enjoy most about working in wind?
Because of my focus on offshore wind, I have witnessed the many challenges associated with that sector: supply chain shortages, technical problems and lack of finance, all of which the industry has solved, mainly by those companies that believed offshore wind had a strong future. I have been delighted to see offshore wind emerge as a true mature asset class.

There will doubtless be new challenges to come, but I am now confident that they will be solvable.

Why did you join A Word About Wind?
I was told the drinks evenings are unmissable!

Wind Watch

Wind Watch is published every Monday and Friday.

In the meantime, here is the latest in a regular series of Q&As profiling our members. Interested in being profiled in future? Please contact Richard Heap, editor or Joe Gulliver, membership manager.

Name: Dominic Szanto

Job: Director, Renewable Energy Capital

Company: JLL

How long have you worked in renewables?
I began my career in energy storage and moved into wind in 2006 when I joined the commercial team of RWE Innogy in their dedicated renewables division. Subsequently, I moved on to head up all of RWE Innogy’s UK and offshore wind M&A activities. In April 2015 I moved to JLL to head up a new offshore wind advisory function.

In ten words or fewer, what does your firm do?
M&A, debt and equity fundraising and financial advisory across renewables.

In which markets do you see the biggest opportunities?
Given sufficient clarity and support, offshore wind in the UK is still a potentially huge market. Even if future growth is limited, there will still be opportunities for consolidation of assets to the ‘lowest cost of capital’, as we have seen in the onshore market, with utilities and developers looking to take more of an asset management role.

Away from the UK, the Dutch auctions are well-structured and will be highly competed and if the USA market takes off, it could provide huge opportunity.

What is the biggest challenge for wind? How would you fix it?
It’s hard to get away from the fact that UK onshore faces challenges both to the levels of subsidy and the success of planning.

Offshore, the challenge is whether developers and investors can trust the Government not to make further retrospective changes which affect the sector: Levy Exemption Certificates have already been removed and projects like Galloper and Rampion would not be immune from changes to the Renewables Obligation.

DECC urgently needs to provide a clear long-term vision for the sector and provide clarity on Contracts for Difference timetables and budgets. It would also be nice to see the same level of planning support for wind as fracking will allegedly receive.

What do you enjoy most about working in wind?
Because of my focus on offshore wind, I have witnessed the many challenges associated with that sector: supply chain shortages, technical problems and lack of finance, all of which the industry has solved, mainly by those companies that believed offshore wind had a strong future. I have been delighted to see offshore wind emerge as a true mature asset class.

There will doubtless be new challenges to come, but I am now confident that they will be solvable.

Why did you join A Word About Wind?
I was told the drinks evenings are unmissable!