LAURA BANO

Laura Bano has several years of experience working in the energy sector in consulting, project development and finance.

Since 2002, Laura has worked as a researcher and freelance consultant in the energy sector, with particular emphasis on regulations and projects implementation for renewable energy sources both in Italy and in Europe. In 2004, she worked for Summa Finance, an Italian consulting services company advising public and private enterprises in economics, financial and insurance, with particular focus on the optimisation and implementation of project financing initiatives. In this regard, she was responsible for the analysis and coordination of all phases of the project financing for a 34MW wind farm in Sardinia. During the past 2 years, Laura has worked as a researcher for IEFE, the Institute of Energy and Environment Economics and Policy, part of Bocconi University in Milan. The subject of the research project was the evaluation of the support mechanisms adopted for renewable energy sources in the EU countries and their effectiveness and efficiency for the achievement of the goals of EU Directive 01/77/EC.

Up to April 2002 she was a Manager in the Power and Utilities Group with Barclays Capital in London, with extensive experience in advising and arranging complex financial transactions worldwide. She was involved in the analysis and structuring of all phases of project finance transactions, including cash-flow modelling, negotiation of terms and conditions, and the analysis of security structures and legal frameworks. Activities included the £550m re-financing and hedging of the Eggborough coal plant in the UK and the €950m re-financing of the Isab Energy 512MW IGCC facility in Italy. She was also responsible for the renegotiation of project and finance agreements following the introduction of New Electricity Trading Arrangements (NETA) in the UK. She was the team member responsible for tracking developments of the Italian energy sector, with particular emphasis on the Italian electricity market and the evaluation of the 15GW asset divestment by Enel.

Prior to this, Laura spent 2 years as an Associate with Edison Mission Energy’s Business Development Group in their European office in London. Her position involved her in the development and implementation of regional strategies as well as new business development initiatives throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa, with particular emphasis on the liberalising markets of Continental Europe. Her knowledge of the Spanish language proved valuable in the overall study and financial analysis of EME’s Aragon CCGT Greenfield development in Northern Spain. She contributed to EME’s power trading team for the integration of the 4GW Fiddlers Ferry and Ferrybridge power stations into the company portfolio for bidding into the UK power Pool. She was also responsible for conducting, coordinating and presenting research into countries, sectors, partners, regulatory systems and international organisations identified as being of interest.

Before joining EME, Laura worked as Economist with RIE, in Bologna, Italy. RIE is an independent Italian research and consulting firm specialising in coal, gas, electricity and renewable energy resources in Italy and Europe. The position involved the development of an information data base on national and international electricity market trends, preparation of reports on the Italian retail gas market for a strategic international player, an economic feasibility study of energy development programs and coordination of a management training programme.

Laura has the equivalent of a First Class Honours degree in Economics from Bologna University and completed part of her studies at the University of Dusseldorf, Germany, where she was granted a scholarship. She speaks Italian, English, German and Spanish.