Team and role overview
BII actively invests to promote energy access in line with SDG 7 and climate action in line with SDG 13 through decentralised energy and resource efficiency (e.g., energy and water) solutions. BII’s Energy Access and Efficiency (EAE) team is part of BII’s broader Infrastructure and Climate Group (ICG), which also includes equity, project finance and intermediated investment teams.
The EAE team provides debt products to businesses that deliver decentralized renewable energy (DRE) such as solar home systems, commercial and industrial (C&I) solar installations and mini-grids. The team also lends to promote innovative resource efficiency solutions that substitute fossil fuels with renewable sources of power generation, enable energy efficiency, including through electric vehicle adoption, clean cooking solutions as well as water conservation. The EAE team can provide direct lending or indirect lending solutions through guarantee structures to catalyse commercial bank lending or investments in dedicated debt funds, including in local currency.
In addition to investing in catalytic transactions, the EAE team supports sector sustainability by partnering with likeminded stakeholders to promote industry-wide initiatives, disseminating knowledge through innovative research and analysis and speaking at conferences and other industry fora.
The EAE team is also the focal point for Kinetic transactions for the Infrastructure and Climate vertical and manages the £ 240m FCDO Climate Innovation Facility (CIF). The primary objective of the funding is to seed innovative business models and/or investment vehicles in nascent markets to support the viability of more inclusive and sustainable economies by using concessional capital in blended structures (i.e., in the form of grants or sub-commercial financing terms). For these more innovative investments and technologies – particularly in nascent climate-related markets – concessional capital is crucial to addressing the higher risks and costs faced by first movers to crowd-in private capital and deliver transformative outcomes. The EAE team’s Kinetic responsibilities include: 1) providing strategic oversight for CIF across BII, including but not limited to setting portfolio construction objectives, pipeline prioritization and monitoring and deployment of capital in line with strategy; and 2) supporting the execution of Kinetic transactions across ICG in collaboration with investment teams.
The EAE team is currently composed of eight professionals and plans to grow to further in the near term. The Head of Energy Access and Efficiency (the “Team Head”) leads the team
Purpose
The Investment Manager (the “Manager”) will be part of the EAE team and will play a key role in expanding BII’s capacity to deliver high-quality, impactful debt investments in the energy access and resource efficiency space with a focus on Kenya and east Africa.
The Manager will be expected to lead and coordinate transaction work (i.e., deal selection, due diligence, structuring, negotiation, monitoring) and manage internal deal teams as well as external relationships with clients, other lenders, advisors, etc. In addition, the Manager will also provide some support to the broader Infrastructure and Climate Group on projects in Kenya and east Africa as well as the BII Nairobi office.
New business: Identification of new lending opportunities by developing and maintaining a network of relevant contacts, including with companies, other investors, advisors, etc.; Participation in conferences and other industry fora to provide visibility to BII across the sector. The Manager’s work will focus on deals where the potential investee is either based out of Kenya or/and has operations in Kenya or the broader East Africa region. Maintain and build new relationships with core partners in the sector based in Nairobi, including like-minded investors, advisors and local consultants.
Evaluation and execution of new investment opportunities: Filter and prioritize new investment proposals according to the EAE mandate and strategy; Lead deal evaluation and execution, taking responsibility for coordinating internal teams and managing external stakeholders; Coordinate the due diligence process, including analysis of sector/market, competitive and macroeconomic trends, company business models and operational plans, financial statements and projections including reviewing and/or building financial models, assessment of key credit risks and potential mitigation strategies; Structure and negotiate key transaction terms; Produce and present investment proposals for the Investment Committee; Review and negotiate key legal documents (term sheets, loan agreements, etc.) in collaboration with BII’s internal legal team and external legal advisors; Coordinate closing and disbursement processes. The primary focus will be on EAE transactions, but the Manager may also support CIF transactions as well.
Portfolio management: Closely monitor the portfolio of existing loans; Review company reports and financials; Analyse and process requests for waivers and amendments; Monitor compliance with covenants; Identify potential credit issues related to the company, sector or country; Prepare and present monitoring reports for internal reviews.
Other: Support other Infrastructure and Climate Group investment teams with origination, execution and/or portfolio management (10-20% of workload); Lead ad hoc strategy or sector research and analytical work with a focus on Kenya and east Africa; Mentor and develop more junior team members. Contribute to the work of the Nairobi office as needed.
The candidate
Background, skills, aptitude
Significant work experience in a relevant debt investment / lending setting (e.g., bank, fund, DFI).
Previous experience leading deal teams.
Experience of all aspects of the deal cycle from originating, through execution and transaction to portfolio management.
Significant experience in the renewable energy, decentralized energy (e.g., solar home systems, C&I solar, mini-grids) and/or energy efficiency sectors, and knowledge of the market, business models, etc.
Experience working in Kenya and east Africa; knowledge of other African markets would be an advantage.
University degree in a relevant field (e.g., economics, finance, corporate finance, accounting). A Masters in a similar field, CFA, ACA or MBA would be an advantage.
Experience in receivables financing, risk sharing/guarantee structures and/or local currency lending would also be a significant advantage.
Strong analytical skills, including the ability to analyse company financial statements and reports, sector data, country context, etc.
Credit skills and ability to identify key risks and make sound commercial judgements.
Excellent financial modelling and Excel skills.
Good business communication and presentation skills.
Outstanding writing and document production skills in Word and PowerPoint.
Strong understanding of typical debt structures and terms.
Relationship building and interpersonal skills, effective at building and maintaining relationships with relevant external contacts, as well as internally across different teams.
Ability to work on multiple opportunities in parallel while meeting deadlines and managing time effectively.
An active interest in investing in developing markets and understanding of emerging market environments, with a willingness to travel to the countries in which BII invests.
Foreign language skills, particularly those spoken in BII’s geographies would be an additional advantage.
Candidates should be strongly motivated by BII’s development mission and ideally demonstrate some commitment to development or social goals through previous executive or non-executive activity.
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