(Author: From Su)
In the field of global new energy investment, many large offshore wind projects that have stalled due to financing problems have attracted great attention in the industry. In January 2024, BP and Norwegian energy company Equinor announced the resumption of their contract for the Empire Wind 2 project in New York, which had previously been cancelled due to cost increases caused by inflation and supply chain problems. This event not only highlights the complexity of fundraising and risk management in new energy projects, but also the indispensable role of financial investment analysts in this field.
In recent years, the renewable energy sector has gained significant global attention. Governments around the world have introduced policies to encourage clean energy development to address climate change and energy security issues. The United States passed the Inflation Mitigation Act (IRA), which provides nearly $400 billion in federal funds, mostly in the form of tax breaks, to support the development of large-scale projects such as wind, solar photovoltaics, clean hydrogen, and nuclear. It also provides subsidies for households that install heat pumps and purchase electric vehicles. Germany's “feed-in tariff” plan allows households to sell excess renewable energy back to the national grid and offers tax breaks for energy-saving renovations. India has set a goal of getting 50% of its electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030 and has significantly increased the penetration of rooftop solar through incentive policies for solar projects. With its “Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme”, Australia offers households financial support for the installation of small energy systems in order to significantly increase the share of renewable energies in the electricity structure.
With the rapid development of the global renewable energy sector, the role of outstanding financial investment analysts in promoting investment projects in this field is particularly important. Ms. Ran Zhang is undoubtedly a leading figure in the field of renewable energy investment and finance. Since entering the field of renewable energy investment and finance in 2016, she has used her outstanding professional skills and leadership qualities to promote the implementation of several large-scale renewable energy investment projects in the United States. Ms. Zhang obtained a double master's degree in quantitative finance and accounting from the University of Denver in the United States. She is currently employed by Orsted – North America LLC, where she focuses on mergers and acquisitions and investment in renewable energy projects and has extensive industry experience in investment.
Ms. Ran Zhang is familiar with the development requirements of renewable energy in the European and American markets, and is aware of the latest policies, hot spots, bottlenecks and future trends. She not only has in-depth insights into the current state of the industry, but also provides excellent future prospects. She believes that policy support is a key factor in the development of the industry. As European and American countries strengthen their policy support for clean energy, renewable energy in Europe and America is expected to experience explosive growth in the coming years. However, there are still many challenges in the actual implementation of projects, especially the uncertainty of financing costs due to inflation and risks such as supply chain bottlenecks, which will be one of the main issues that future companies investing in renewable energy need to focus on.
Ms. Ran Zhang's research emphasizes the importance of the financing environment for new energy projects. Although governments around the world have introduced large-scale tax incentives such as the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of the United States and the Green Deal of the European Union, injecting new vitality into the industry, they also bring new risks and uncertainties. For example, the long-term financing cost of projects may increase significantly due to interest rate fluctuations. In addition, she analyzed supply chain risks in depth and highlighted the fragility of the global supply chain. The supply chain bottlenecks caused by the explosive project development following policy incentives, especially in the supply of key components and raw materials, will have a significant impact on the timely completion of projects.
In concrete projects, Ms. Ran Zhang demonstrated her outstanding strategic vision and practical skills. The projects she led not only achieved significant financial returns, but also significantly improved the overall effectiveness of the investment portfolio through optimized investment structure and risk management.
Ms. Ran Zhang has been involved in the evaluation and implementation of several large new energy projects and was responsible for the evaluation of new energy acquisition or equity projects with total project costs of over US$1.8 billion per year. Her expertise and practical skills in project evaluation, due diligence and risk analysis earned her great respect within the team. The analysis and evaluation work she led included acquisition pricing, revenue forecasting, project potential and competitiveness analysis, and risk assessment during the project execution process. The transaction schemes she designed not only optimized returns but also promoted the implementation of several key investment decisions.
In recent years, Ms. Ran Zhang has successfully participated in the acquisition of six projects in the US market with a total investment of US$960 million and an expected net present value of over US$530 million. She also helped achieve a total project financing of US$680 million. From due diligence to final implementation, she has been instrumental in and managed several major projects, ensuring their success while promoting the optimization of the company's overall investment structure in line with the company's long-term strategic development requirements.
Ms. Ran Zhang's achievements not only reflect her personal professional qualities and leadership skills, but also highlight her deep understanding and forward-looking perspective of industry development. Her research results in valuation analysis, due diligence and risk management are innovative and practical, and contribute greatly to the development of the industry. Looking ahead, Ms. Ran Zhang will undoubtedly continue to play an important role in the new energy field and add more wisdom and strength to the development of the industry. Her success story will undoubtedly inspire more young professionals to engage in this promising and challenging field.
