Experience

 

Ampersand Energy Partners LLC ("Ampersand") is a Massachusetts LLC established in January 2003 to pursue investment opportunities in the power sector. Ampersand is the manager of Ampersand California Biomass Fund I, which holds a 40% interest in a project company currently restarting two biomass facilities in California. Ampersand also manages Ampersand North American Hydro Fund II, which is in exclusive negotiations to acquire several small hydro stations in New York.

Ampersand is owned and managed by A.J. Goulding, and staffed through a long term services agreement with London Economics International LLC (“LEI”). LEI is a global economic and financial professional services firm, focusing on the energy and infrastructure industries. Mr. Goulding is a principal of and also serves as president of LEI, and is a leading expert on the valuation of power sector assets. He has advised on the successful acquisition of several billion dollars worth of power sector assets worldwide, has worked with regulators to design power markets, and is a professor at Columbia University, where he teaches a course on power markets. Mr. Goulding is also an investor in several power sector private equity vehicles. He led a management buyout of LEI in 2000. Prior private equity transactions with Mr. Goulding has led or participated in have resulted in investor returns of 20-50%.

Mr. Goulding and the senior power sector experts at LEI collectively have over two centuries of experience in liberalizing power markets. Mr. Goulding and his colleagues have drafted FERC and state regulatory testimony, have modeled wholesale price outcomes in all North American markets, and have provided negotiation and litigation support regarding a host of power sector contractual issues. In addition, their years of experience have provided them with a strong network of contacts among power marketers, power sector legal advisors, plant operators, debt financers, and other industry investors. This set of relationships is critical both in helping to identify opportunities and to cost-effectively capitalize on them.

In addition to the expertise of Mr. Goulding and his colleagues at LEI, Ampersand maintains a stable of senior advisors. These senior advisors include the former president of a leading developer of cogeneration facilities in New England as well as a UK based expert on global electricity market design. Such advisors may provide the nucleus of an experienced independent advisory board. In addition, Ampersand has developed strong working relationships with a network of small hydro owners and operators; these individuals provide engineering and technical support to Ampersand, as well as serving as a source of potential leads.

The outsourcing arrangement with LEI ensures that operating costs for the Fund remain low. LEI provides access (at cost plus an administrative fee) to state-of-the-art power market models, an extensive technical library of power sector resources, up-to-the-minute financial data, databases of power plant operational histories, and trained staff. LEI also provides administrative support, and provides the Fund the benefit of its bargaining power to obtain cost-effective outside services such as legal, engineering, and accounting support.