North American leadership team appointed to drive expansion into US energy market

Lightsource Renewable Energy has announced its North American management team that will lead its expansion into the U.S. energy market.

The San Francisco-based team of COO Kevin Christy and CCO Katherine Ryzhaya will drive the company’s deployment of large-scale solar and energy storage solutions in the US market. With a focus on complete project lifecycle – from origination and development to Asset Management and O&M. The team will lead the market in customized, cost-effective solar and energy storage solutions for utilities, municipalities, cooperatives and large commercial customers.

Kevin previously co-founded and led PV developer Axio Power – a platform which developed and delivered 1 Gigawatts (GW) of solar projects and pipeline. Axio was the first utility-scale platform acquired by SunEdison in 2011. Katherine joins from Advanced Microgrid Solutions, a company she co-founded which is now a leader in energy storage solutions for utilities and large commercial and industrial customers.

This homegrown US talent joins a highly experienced Lightsource global management team which has overseen hundreds of projects and financings, including a £284 million 22-year renewables bond – the largest ever sterling-denominated renewables bond.

Lightsource UK has grown from six-person start-up in 2010 to Europe’s leading solar energy company – deploying more than £2.4bn in solar projects alongside major investment partners, including £1.5bn in the last 18 months. The company has developed an integrated platform encompassing development, project management, construction management, and long-term operation of more than 1.7GW of utility-scale solar plants – including the world’s first deep water floating solar array, located in London. With this expansion into North America, the company is committed to continuing the impressive growth and shareholder value creation.

The company will pursue greenfield project development as well as a flexible, open framework that will enable smaller, more lightly-capitalized developers to partner with Lightsource in North America to leverage the platform and experience of the company and management team. This will enable our development partners to focus on their core expertise, keep their overheads low, and de-risk their investments.

Kevin Christy – North America COO, said: “The Lightsource end-to-end platform and entrepreneurial, innovative culture make for a granite foundation upon which to build value for our customers. We also welcome co-development ventures with project sponsors who want to leverage a strong, bankable global platform while working with partners they know and trust.”

Katherine Ryzhaya – North America CCO, said: “It is a delight and an honour to be part of the inaugural North America team. As industry veterans backed by the strong financial support of a transcontinental leader, we are well positioned to capture significant market share of the exponentially growing U.S. solar and storage market.”

Lightsource founder and Global CEO, Nick Boyle, added: “We’re very pleased to welcome Kevin & Katherine to the company. Their knowledge and expertise within the North American large-scale solar and storage sectors is a perfect addition to our team and puts us in an ideal position to move at pace into the market. We are uniting two of the most successful teams in the solar industry and I firmly believe that we have the potential to shape the future of global energy.”

Visit our careers page to find out about our exciting roles in North America.