Augusta Strengthen French Presence and Debt Advisory Offering with Appointment of Romane Guitard, Managing Director

Specialist financial advisor, Augusta & Co., appoints former Rio Tinto Director to enhance market expertise and deal making capabilities.

London, 6th November 2019 – Augusta & Co., a specialist financial advisor to the renewable energy industry, has today announced the appointment of Romane Guitard to the position of Managing Director.

Romane will be responsible for expanding Augusta’s advisory and deal making capability in the French market. With Romane on board, Augusta confirms an enhanced French-speaking team of experienced professionals able to closely serve its clients in France.

Romane will also reinforce the group’s debt advisory offering across Europe, further consolidating Augusta’s unique holistic approach to M&A advisory in renewables. Augusta has been investing heavily to build its ability to source PPAs across Europe and to bring together competitive debt packages. In the current evolving renewables market, having the capacity to concomitantly source and optimize equity, debt and offtake is a key advantage in maximizing a transaction’s value.

Romane brings substantial experience in structured debt and project finance in the infrastructure and natural resources sector. Through her 13 years at Société Générale and subsequently at Rio Tinto, she has developed deep experience in advising boards and management teams on their capital structure, debt financing strategies and merchant risk management and is well positioned to support Augusta’s strategy.

The appointment comes at a time of increasing flexibility in the French renewables market, with the introduction of the new compensation mechanism and the opening of the corporate PPA market to non-national electricity suppliers. These changes should support investors’ appetite and increased project development across all technologies. Augusta has been active in the French renewable energy market for over a decade and acted as lead advisor on several landmark transactions in the last 18 months.

Commenting on the sector’s changing risk profile, Romane said, “With subsidies fading away, investors in the renewables sector are being pushed to enter into corporate PPAs or find ways to take on more price risk. These are matters that have been dealt with in the commodities space for decades. I am excited to work with Augusta to support investors and lenders to adjust to this new environment and use the lessons learnt in commodities to help shape the future of the renewables industry.”

“Augusta has been leading the development of subsidy-free financing solutions in the Nordics. With France having recently seen the first corporate PPA closings, we are very well placed to help our clients navigate the sector transition and I very much look forward to bringing my own expertise to bear.”

James Knight, Partner, added, “We are very pleased to have Romane on board. Her senior market-specific expertise and deep financing knowledge will further our ability to deliver market leading advice to our clients, cement our commitment to the French market and help deliver renewable energy projects in this new post-subsidy market environment.”