3rd Renewable Energy Finance Forum India (REFF-India)

Date: 20 November 2008 - 21 November 2008
Venue: Renaissance Mumbai Hotel & Convention Centre , Mumbai

Event agenda

Day 1 - Thursday, 20 November 2008

07:30

Registration and coffee

08:50

Welcome and opening remarks

Vered Tsedaka, Conference Manager, Euromoney Energy Events

SESSION 1: OPENING KEYNOTE SESSION

Chair

Matthew S. Mendis, President, C-Quest Capital

09:00

The roadmap for development of renewable energy in India

• How will the shift towards cleaner development affect the Indian renewable energy industry?
•The investment opportunities that are set to emerge
Debashish Majumdar, Chairman and Managing Director, IREDA

09:15

Implementation of policies at state level

• Support mechanisms in delivering change
• Assessing how to interpret the goals in a way that benefits the state and overall growth
• Attracting investment
Dr Pramod Deo, Chairman, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, Government of India

09:30

Renewable energy from an asset financier's perspective

• The global surge in renewable energy investment
• Financing requirements for project development, construction and operation
• Factors attracting debt and equity finance to the renewables sector
Thomas Rüschen, Global Head of Asset Financing and Leasing, and Member of the Global Banking Executive Committee, Deutsche Bank

09:45

Questions and discussion

10:40

Networking refreshment break

SESSION 2: KEYNOTE FINANCE SESSION

This session will review the investment landscape for renewable energy in India, presenting the viewpoints of different investors operating in the market.

Looking closely at the way renewable energy projects are presently financed, the panel will discuss how the investment community sees the way forward.

Chair

Opening remarks

Debashish Majumdar, Chairman and Managing Director, IREDA

11:20

A state bank’s view on the risk profile for renewable energy projects and the required due diligence

Rajat Misra, Vice President, Project Advisory and Structured Finance, SBI Capital Markets Ltd

11:30

The opportunities in India’s renewable markets for private equity investments

Satish Mandhana, Managing Director - Investments, IDFC Private Equity

11:40

Debt Finance for renewables energy projects in India

• Challenges for equity investors and borrowers
Vivek Mittal, Managing Director, Millennium Resource Strategies Ltd

11:50

Questions and discussion

12:30

Networking lunch

SESSION 3: FORWARD LOOKING TRENDS IN INVESTMENT

The global investment landscape in renewables is diversifying, with funds flowing into ventures beyond the familiar technology business models.

This session will explore some of the innovative financing options and look at what lessons can be applied to the Indian market.

Chair

Opening remarks

Pinaki Bhattacharyya, Principal, IDFC Private Equity

13:55

The evolving nature of financial products available for renewable energy projects in India

Jotdeep Singh, Director and Head - Renewable Energy and Carbon Credits India and Regional Coordinator Asia, Rabobank

14:05

Comparative case study – Financing and market development across technologies in China

Sara Lynn Pesek, Associate, New Energy Finance

14:15

Can renewable energy investments in India be structured to form an appealing investment route for institutional investors?

Pankaj Sehgal, Director, Alternate Energy and Technology Investments, Sun Group

14:25

Questions and discussion

SESSION 4: SECTOR FOCUS - SOLAR

Globally, the solar sector is presently attracting the vast majority of venture capital, as well as the majority of cleantech research and development investment.

This session will explore the opportunities emerging in India both as a manufacturing hub and with respect to the untapped potential for installed capacity.

Chair

Pankaj Sehgal, Director, Alternate Energy and Technology Investments, Sun Group

15:10

Applying energy efficiency business models to solar technology

Hari Chereddi, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, SUNLED Technologies Pvt Limited

15:30

Large scale distribution models in India and the potential for capacity scale-up

T Ananth, Chief Executive Officer, Nuetech Solar Systems Pvt

15:50

Questions and discussion

16:15

Networking refreshment break

SESSION 5: ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSIONS

In cooperation with the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate

REFF-India offers a unique opportunity to gather in one room key industry thought leaders. To take advantage of this, the conference will break into a set of roundtables, each moderated by an industry expert.

The roundtables offer investors, project developers, technology firms and policy makers the opportunity to take part in interactive discussion groups on key themes.

The findings of the roundtable discussions will be presented by the moderators to all conference participants, and will further be incorporated into the work of the APP on expansion of investment and trade in cleaner energy technologies, goods and services in India.

About the Asia Pacific Partnership:
Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the United States have agreed to work together and with private sector partners to meet goals for energy security and climate change in ways that promote sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction.

Roundtable moderators:
Matthew S. Mendis, President, C-Quest Capital, LLC on behalf of the APP
Kirsty Hamilton, Associate Fellow, RE Finance Project, Chatham House
Vivek Mittal, Managing Director, Millennium Resource Strategies Ltd

17:45

Networking drinks reception


Day 2 - Friday, 21 November 2008

08:00

Networking breakfast with roving microphone

Delegates will have the chance to briefly introduce themselves to fellow conference attendees

09:00

Welcome and opening remarks

Vered Tsedaka, Conference Manager, Euromoney Energy Events

PRESENTATION OF THE ROUNDTABLE FINDINGS

10:15

Networking refreshment break

SESSION 6: CARBON FINANCE

Signals in the global community towards engagement in frameworks regulating emissions strongly suggests a continuation and possible expansion of a carbon trading
framework beyond 2012.

The session will feature the perspectives of originators, buyers and sellers on the role of carbon as a financing instrument and as a commodity.

Chair

Markus Hüwener, Chief Executive Officer, First Climate

10:50

Structured financing for the carbon market in India – A business perspective

Umesh Kumar Chhabra, Head Client Relationship, Global Client Group, ICICI Bank Limited

11:00

Establishing a mechanism for Renewable Energy Certificates in the Indian market

Balawant Joshi, Director, ABPS Infrastructure Advisory Private Limited

11:10

Carbon as a financing tool in RE project development and the outlook post 2012

Vinod K Kala, Managing Director, Emergent Ventures India

11:20

Management of carbon asset ownership throughout the generation lifecycle

Dr Ram Babu, Managing Director, Cantor CO2e

11:30

Questions and discussion

12:00

Networking lunch

SESSION 7: SECTOR FOCUS - WIND

Chair

Opening remarks

Dr Anil Kane, Chairman, Indian Wind Energy Association

13:25

The global wind market – Opportunities for growth through manufacturing scale-up in India

V V Rao, Head of IT, Suzlon

13:35

Electricity off-take arrangements and their impact on project development and financing

Jami Hossain, Managing Director, WindForce Management

13:45

Is the slowdown in growth signalling a trend for the Indian wind sector?

Mahesh Makhija, Vice President, Renewables, CLP India

13:55

Questions and discussion

14:30

Networking refreshment break

SESSION 8: SECTOR FOCUS - DEMAND-SIDE SUSTAINABILITY

It is becoming increasingly clear that the clean development frameworks needs to expand to incorporate demand-side sustainability.

Improved efficiency of resource utilisation is not only crucial for long term sustainability, it also holds the potential to carry strong financial benefits.
The session will look more closely at the sectors of energy efficiency and water in India, raising discussion on possible investment models.

15:00

Opening remarks

Sudha Setty, Senior Program Manager and Regional Director South Asia, Alliance to Save Energy

15:10

Government policies to promote sustainable energy consumption

Balawant Joshi, Director, ABPS Infrastructure Advisory Private Limited on behalf of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Government of India

15:20

Innovative financial models to make energy efficiency work

• The need to make demand-side sustainability financially viable
• The true cost of energy efficiency
• Utilising carbon credits as a financing mechanism
Dr Mahesh Patankar, Associate Director, International Institute for Energy Conservation

15:30 - DISCUSSION Demand-side sustainability markets vary considerably from the established supply-side markets and developing adequate financial models is key to turning them into a viable investment opportunity.
What measures are required to drive the sector forward?
Is privatisation of key services a necessity?

SESSION 9: SECTOR FOCUS - BIOENERGY

India’s heavy dependence on oil imports for sustaining its energy demand offers a great potential for any viable opportunity to diversify the energy mix.

Securing feedstock supply remains a key issue in putting bioenergy together, as does the deployment of more advanced technologies.

The session will look more closely at the sectors of biomass, waste-to-energy and biofuels, looking at case studies of putting together such projects and identifying the type of investments suitable to deliver them and generate returns.

Chair

Chaitanya Kalia, Partner, Climate Change and Sustainability Services, Ernst & Young

16:20

Bioenergy in India and the energy mix

• The backdrop of oil prices globally – Recent fluctuations and the long term view
• Biofuels technology maturation points at this stage in time
• Land and water – What is the verdict on vegetable oils?
• Adequacy of the present bioenergy policy landscape in India
Anant Pande, Chief Operating Officer, Indo Greenfuel Consultants Private Ltd

16:30

Securing feedstock supply for a sustainable project – A case study

Shubhada Jahagirdar, Director, EnerSearch

16:40

Developing dedicated insurance products for the bioenergy industry

• Insurance products to secure fuel supply
• Credit default risk products for power purchase agreements
H V Kumar, Director, Crestar Capital India Private Ltd

16:50 - DISCUSSION
Rising energy costs are placing increasing pressure on government oil subsidies, yet domestically, resource allocation of land and water is still being heavily debated.
Can the potential for biofuels in India be realised within the scope of existing technologies, and how?

17:20

Close of conference and closing drinks