This summer, I had the opportunity to work on the investment and portfolio management team at New York Green Bank (NYGB). NYGB's mission is to provide market-rate financing to clean energy and infrastructure projects in New York State that are unable to obtain financing from private markets. The funding of these projects is one way in which NY moves towards the ambitious emissions targets set forth in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA).

I was able to work on several projects that helped NYGB. One major project I worked on was due diligence and structuring for loan requests. As a government entity, NYGB solicits proposals for loans from the public. These proposals then go through various rounds of scoring and screening before NYGB can make a loan. I was able to take the lead in evaluating one funding request that we received from a solar developer who needed capital to fund the cost of connecting a solar panel installation to the grid, also known as interconnection. One of the biggest obstacles in installing more clean energy in NY is the difficulty that developers have in securing funding to pay for interconnection. In order to make a recommendation on whether to fund this project, I had to learn about the nuances of interconnection, evaluate company financials and performance to understand whether this project would succeed, and determine if they would be able to pay off a potential loan. This diligence process was extremely important for NYGB as it helps ensure that the limited capital available is going to sophisticated projects that will enable NY to meet the targets set forth in the CLCPA.

In order to be effective in my role this summer at NYGB, I had to rely heavily on what I learned in the classroom this past year. Classes such as Business and Climate Change and Climate Finance gave me a robust understanding of different types of clean energy technologies that are being implemented today, which became useful when evaluating loan proposals across a wide variety of technology types. Having an understanding of the issues facing solar power and battery energy storage systems was invaluable as it helped me have a deeper understanding in the projects from the start and make suggestions on how to structure a loan that would mitigate risks specific to a certain technology type. Additionally, learning about non-recourse lending in Climate Finance was directly applicable to the work I did over the summer as the majority of loans that NYGB writes have non-recourse aspects.

The main challenge was the steep learning curve that I faced coming into the world of project finance lending for energy and infrastructure projects. Having no background in any of these areas meant that I had to spend the first few weeks of my internship doing a lot of independent research and asking rather basic questions to my team. Thankfully I was working on a team that was understanding and was invested in my learning journey. Another point that was particularly challenging was working with potential borrowers with a variety of different profiles. While some borrowers were extremely organized and put together comprehensive and compelling project proposals that made our job of evaluation and structuring easier, others struggled to articulate their needs or vision for a partnership, which would require us to put in extra effort to see if we could provide financing solutions.

Going into this summer, and Columbia Business School (CBS) broadly, one thing that I wanted to confirm was whether a career in project finance lending was the right career path for me. I’m happy to report that 10 weeks on the front lines at NYGB gave me clarity that I have selected the right path. Coming into Business School, I wanted to position myself to pursue roles that combined my experience in finance, interest in credit markets, and passion for the renewable energy transition. At NYGB, I was able to get precisely that experience, which in turn helped me confirm that I am on the right path for me. Another takeaway that I had was how impressive each member of the team was, and the passion that they brought to advancing clean energy goals and climate equity to NY. From veteran wall street bankers to policy wonks, it was really inspiring to see people from all different backgrounds coming together to make New York State a better place.