Meet the Industry – 19 March 2018
Fontavis AG Investment Analyst and ISE Alumnus, Felix Michel met with ISE students and shared industry experience
REYKJAVIK, March 23 – This Monday, Fontavis AG representative and ISE alumnus Felix Michel visited Reykjavik University to speak with ISE students about his experience after graduation and his insight on the investment process, specifically in the renewable energy industry. Originally from Zurich, Switzerland, Felix graduated earned his MSc in Sustainable Energy at ISE in 2017. For his master thesis, Felix researched on the impacts of integrating wind power in Iceland to the balance requirements in the Icelandic power grid, which landed him a job as an investment analyst at Fontavis AG. Fontavis is an independent asset manager and investment advisor that specializes in clean energy and infrastructure investments primarily in the north and west Europe. The company was founded in 2011 and based in Baar, Switzerland.
For ISE students, the opportunity to attend this seminar by an alumnus was as real as it gets. As an investment analyst, Felix is responsible for constructing financial models for various transactions and supporting transaction realization. Felix first discussed that there are many types of investments and touched on four of them, with their associated focus and levels of service. These include: Investment Banking, Private Equity (PE), Venture Capital (VC), and Infrastructure and Renewable Energy Real Estate. Specifically, the “infrastructure and renewable energy real estate” category focuses on investing in hard assets, analyzing and predicting for acceptable revenue and collecting distributions until the end of the concessional period.
Felix then discusses a financial model that is typically used and its components. In his words,
The aim of a financial model is to reflect the financial reality of a project or a power plant as best as possible given the information provided, such that we can assess the financial profitability of the project of interest.
However, it should be noted that the financial model vary depending on the project. The role of the analyst is to identify these differences and utilize the available information as best as possible to accurately predict the profitability of the project or investment.
Felix concluded his presentation with a summary of the industry and left his audience with very important takeaways. Renewable energy investment (REI) is a very dynamic area to work in with numerous markets that are dynamic themselves. REI however, is essential to the future of green energy as without it, the industry would not be able to run as smoothly. Most importantly, Felix explained that REI is a very interesting field to work in as it has offered him the best of both worlds. Not only has he been able to learn about the technical side, but also the chance to delve in the economical side of the industry. As such, for anyone who aspires to be an investment analyst, the dynamics on the market will never leave you bored at your job!