K&M is pleased to announce that in conjunction with the Inter-American Development Bank and The World Bank, it assessed the impact of Covid on more than 20 water utilities in Latin America and the Caribbean. This paper published by the Inter-American Development Bank, within the framework of a consultancy financed by the Swiss Embassy in Colombia-Cooperación Económica y Desarrollo (SECO), explains some unexpected results of this assessment.

This paper was co-authored by Nils Janson, Managing Director of Policy and Regulation, and Laura Bulbena. The co-authors worked with editors, Maria Eduarda Gouvêa Berto, Keisuke Sasaki, Javier Garcia Merino, and Julio Cesar Aguilera Wilches. Special thanks to Corinne Cathala, Evan Cayetano, and Maria Navia for helping convince the utilities to provide data. Also, the team greatly appreciates the insights provided by Anamaría Camacho López, and the contributions and comments of Carmen Yee Batista, P.E. and Berenice Flores Arias Uijtewaal of The World Bank.

Click here to read the full assessment.

Continuing K&M’s history in providing superior technical and financial expertise in the solar energy industry, K&M is pleased to announce two of its newest projects advising on both floating and concentrated solar energy projects.

K&M was recently contracted by a development bank to provide a global market assessment on floating solar projects and the potential development of a pipeline of such projects. This market assessment will expand across Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe and Central Asia, but will primarily identify key markets in Africa and Asia. K&M will also suggest potential business models for the floating storage projects.

In Chile, K&M was contracted by a private investment fund to advise on a 210-megawatt (MW) solar project that combined concentrated solar power (CSP) and photovoltaic (PV) technologies. The 100 MW PV plant and the 110 MW CSP plant are now in operation. The private investor client engaged K&M to perform both technical and market due-diligence reviews, with the major focus on the 110 MW CSP power generation facility, first of its kind in Latin America.

As the demand for solar energy increases, K&M is prepared to provide expert level advising services on a variety of solar projects, including but not limited to concentrated and floating solar technologies.

Reflecting on this year’s Earth Day and the White House’s Leaders Summit on Climate, the world is trending towards cleaner and sustainable energy. While the most commonly known renewable energy technologies include solar PV, wind, geothermal, and hydroelectric technologies, another energy source is gaining much attention. Although Hydrogen is not new, the way in which the energy and transportation industries use this abundant element is changing.

Several members of K&M’s staff attended the Hydrogen Congress for Latin America & the Caribbean Conference (H2LAC) recently and participated in some sessions that explored creating a market for Hydrogen, bankable Hydrogen power projects, and creating national and regional Hydrogen roadmaps. Kathleen Cohen, Analyst from K&M’s Strategic Practice commented, “Countries in LAC like Brazil, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago are making roadmaps and investments to develop their Hydrogen economies. They are prioritizing Green Hydrogen and hope to use it to decarbonize their chemical, power, and transportation sectors as well as create Hydrogen export capabilities.” Green Hydrogen is becoming increasingly popular because it is created using renewable energy, versus the traditional methods of using coal or other fossil fuels, which in turn produces Grey Hydrogen. Senior Analyst in the Policy and Regulation Practice, Lindsay Burkhard, mirrors this emphasis on Green Hydrogen, but also notes that “Blue Hydrogen also presents much promise for achieving energy transition goals” in the region.

Since a modern and greatly expanded Hydrogen energy industry is just at its beginning stages, K&M is dedicated to being a leader in the industry and will aim to provide expertise and insight into the world of Hydrogen. A new initiative that will launch in May is K&M’s Hydrogen Club, which invites clients and prospective clients to explore Hydrogen from the basic level, to exploring existing and future technologies, market trends, and investing opportunities. K&M’s Hydrogen Club will foster a creative and collaborative learning environment which seeks to increase clients’ knowledge in Hydrogen energy.

With the current shift towards renewable and cleaner energy, several utilities and power generation clients are left wondering how do they reduce their carbon footprint in a cost-effective manner? K&M was recently hired by a power utility in the Caribbean to model various decarbonization generation scenarios, including combinations of different technologies, such as solar PV, wind, lithium battery, green Hydrogen, and natural gas. The model will assist this utility to find the least-cost and least-carbon emitting mix of technologies.

This is one of the first advisory projects in which K&M will model a Green Hydrogen system for power generation. K&M is analyzing the cost and emissions reductions of producing Green Hydrogen with electricity from excess renewable generation and storing and using that Hydrogen in a turbine converted to run 100% on Hydrogen and/or using a 15|85 Hydrogen | natural gas blend on existing reciprocating engines. K&M’s model includes cost and efficiency parameters for every step in the Green Hydrogen production and utilization process.  The model also analyzes hourly production requirements, as well as hourly wind and solar generation, to determine the cycling of the Lithium batteries and estimate when there is excess renewable energy that could be used to produce Green Hydrogen.

K&M is ready to assist its clients to analyze least-cost and clean energy generation options to reduce their carbon footprint.

A nascent but growing market, small-scale LNG offers customers that are too small to benefit from large-scale LNG projects the ability to use natural gas—a cheaper and cleaner fuel than diesel or other fuel oils. Without reliance on pipeline infrastructure, small-scale LNG provides flexibility to serve users who do not require large amounts of LNG as well as users located in remote and off-grid locations. K&M is a leading advisor in small-scale LNG solutions. K&M’s small-scale LNG experience is international, with recent projects spanning Latin America and the Caribbean as well as West Africa.

In West Africa, K&M was hired by the IFC to perform the demand analysis for potential small-scale LNG/gas off-takers located in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. Ultimately, the IFC plans to develop an LNG terminal located in the harbor of Freetown, Sierra Leone, based around a floating storage unit (FSU) that would breakbulk LNG, small-scale LNG carriers, and small receiving terminals with storage, regasification, truck, and ISO container filling capabilities. This LNG terminal would ultimately provide LNG and natural gas in Freetown and deliver small parcels of LNG to Guinea and Liberia. Most end-users are commercial & industrial (C&I) users that would consume between 200 tons and 10,000 tons per year of LNG to meet their energy requirements.

In Aruba, K&M was hired to advise on the development of a small-scale LNG import terminal to supply LNG/gas to a 200 MW power plant. K&M analyzed the switching economics of HFO to LNG, identified and analyzed various small-scale LNG import terminal options, and performed pre-FEED and Class 4 cost estimates on the preferred option. K&M is currently advising on the competitive selection of an ex-ship LNG supplier.

In the Cayman Islands, K&M was hired to review and finalize a work-in-progress version of the country’s LNG-to-Power strategy. K&M is identifying viable sites and commercial structures for small-scale LNG import terminals that include combinations of floating vs. onshore storage and floating vs. onshore regasification systems, different storage tank sizes, as well as ISO containers.

In Central America, K&M identified the demand for LNG from industrial users across Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. K&M developed a cost model to estimate the cost per MMBtu of transporting small quantities of LNG from an LNG terminal to each of the countries using ISO containers by road, LNG trailers, and multimodal transport (by road and sea) in ISO containers. Based on the cost model, K&M recommended the optimal method for transporting LNG at a lower cost relative to the current fuel used.

Currently, K&M is advising a private client to identify and quantify the addressable market for small-scale LNG shipping in the Caribbean, West Africa, and Southeast Asia. K&M will expound upon its own LNG database by assessing existing and ongoing small-scale LNG facilities in the selected regions. K&M will then analyze the cost of delivered LNG to each power plant. This analysis will include the cost of converting the power plant to natural gas, comparing the LNG cost to the cost of the fuel currently used, and aggregating the demand for those power plants where LNG is less costly than the current fuel.

As small-scale LNG continues to provide unique solutions for small off-takers, K&M is positioned to be a source of expertise to its clients. 

2020 was a year unlike any other in recent memory. Like most of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic forced K&M to reevaluate its business strategies and devise a path in which to flourish amidst the pandemic’s uncertainty. Despite this adversity, the K&M team adapted, was resilient, and worked hard to go the extra mile advising existing clients and securing an impressive number of new clients. K&M feels proud of its achievements.    

In these challenging times, K&M helped clients assess the impact of the pandemic. The Policy and Regulation Practice developed financial models for several utilities in Latin America and the Caribbean to analyze the financial and operational impact of COVID-19. In addition to advising numerous clients on the pandemic’s impact, the Policy and Regulation Practice helped clients with climate resiliency and water and wastewater regulatory strategies. Since the launch of the Policy and Regulation Practice in January 2019, Managing Director, Nils Janson, has grown the practice and welcomed three new analysts in 2020.

Led by Derek Martin, the Transaction Services Practice supported several new clean energy projects. While K&M has longstanding experience with renewable energy technologies, 2020 provided opportunities for K&M to deepen its expertise in energy storage, solar PV, and geothermal technologies across Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean.  The Transaction Services Practice’s work on hybrid storage and solar projects is setting a new standard for structuring bankable projects for commercial and industrial users who want to migrate away from the grid.  Despite the limitations imposed by the pandemic, the Transaction Services Practice made substantial progress in 2020 on the competitive procurement of two very complex transactions (hydropower in Malawi and geothermal in Kenya).

The Strategic Practice, led by President Alfonso Guzman, expanded its work in the LNG space.  Throughout 2020, the practice expanded its expertise on mid and small-scale LNG supply solutions for island economies and off-grid large energy users.  For example, K&M is advising several Caribbean islands on developing and procuring small-scale LNG supply logistic solutions, including LNG delivered in ISO containers or small-scale LNG carriers.  The practice also expanded K&M’s work advising on breakbulk LNG import projects capable of supplying small LNG volumes to mines and other large energy users. For example, K&M is advising the IFC and Gaslog on an LNG breakbulk terminal in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Reflecting on the successes of the Technical Services Practice, Managing Director, Lenny Golbin, started the Independent Engineer assignment for the 470 MW Attarat Oil Shale Power Plant Project in Jordan. This project is strategically important for the county as it uses an indigenous fuel source and contributes significantly to its energy independence.  The Technical Services Practice also continued its work on the 180 MW Independent Power Project in Guam, providing Guam Power Authority with advisory services required to obtain necessary permits and achieve financial close. The Technical Services Practice was active in Jamaica and continues to support the Old Harbour 190 MW IPP. Currently, K&M is helping the project achieve commercial operation using liquid fuel.

While uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 remains, K&M is confident that 2021 will be a remarkable year.  K&M is grateful for its clients, staff, and collaborators’ support, trust, and hard work. K&M is looking ahead to continue its history of collaborating with clients to create lasting impacts in the global power and water sectors.

The Cayman Islands’ Caribbean Utility Company (CUC) is considering a switch from diesel to LNG for the island’s power generation needs. K&M has been hired to assist the CUC in its development of an LNG-to-Power strategy.

The purpose of the LNG-to-Power strategy is to examine the costs, risks, and development schedule for various LNG import options. There are several LNG import options for the Cayman Islands to consider with the majority of these options costing less than the current importation of diesel fuel. While LNG may offer significant cost savings, CUC’s LNG-to-Power strategy will also examine associated risks and the time required to build the LNG infrastructure. In the end, the CUC hopes to have a handful of viable LNG-to-Power options from which to launch a gas supply competitive procurement process.

Under the direction of K&M’s President, Alfonso Guzman, K&M will first review and comment on the LNG supply options analysis performed by CUC. This task will include reviewing proposals received from LNG and CNG suppliers as well as confirming the type and main characteristics of the viable options for importing, storing, regasifying, and transporting gas to CUC’s power plants. K&M will also identify and analyze viable LNG-to-Power contracting and procurement options. Following the development of the LNG-to-Power strategy, K&M expects to assist CUC with the competitive procurement of natural gas supply for the island.

As the need for lower cost energy options increase, K&M is ready to assist its clients with a wide range of cost saving and sustainable solutions, including LNG.  

K&M is a leading expert advising commercial and industrial (C&I) power users, investors, and lenders on the development of power supply solutions. Due to the occurrence of common power supply problems for C&I users, K&M has developed a proven approach to identifying optimal solutions.

K&M’s approach starts with problem diagnosis and regulatory analysis. The information gained from these two reviews allows us to identify and analyze power supply options and evaluate associated risks for C&I users. Once the risks have been assessed, K&M proceeds with the conceptual design followed by the development of the technical specifications. K&M will then draft the RFP, project agreements, and manage the competitive tender. Upon selection of a preferred supplier, K&M will assist the C&I user negotiate the EPC contract and provide oversight during installation.

K&M has partnered with several C&I power users, investors, and lenders on recent power projects. For example, in Kenya, K&M is performing a technical and economic assessment of energy supply options for a planned industrial park owned by Oserian, a Kenyan flower company. Oserian’s goal for the industrial park is to meet clients’ energy demands with renewables including geothermal and solar PV. K&M led the economic and financial assessment, which included a cost/benefit and payback analysis of the proposed investments under several relevant scenarios.

In Colombia, K&M identified and analyzed power supply alternatives for the Port of Cartagena – a seaport which was experiencing frequent power interruptions causing significant delays in the loading and unloading of containers. K&M’s work included analysis of an interconnection to the high and medium-voltage network, self-generation with natural gas, diesel, wind, and solar PV; storage (batteries or flywheels); load management systems; and other power options. After the preferred power option was confirmed, K&M prepared the conceptual design and costs estimates, performed economic, financial and environmental analysis, and developed an implementation plan, including a tender package for use in a competitive procurement process.

K&M has a proven track-record advising on C&I power solutions and is ready to assist clients in optimizing their power solutions.  

K&M’s Technical Services Team was hired by the National Electric Power Company (NEPCO) and Attarat Power Company (APCO) to serve as Independent Engineers for the 554 MW Attarat Oil Shale Power Plant Project. NEPCO is a national electric utility in Jordan that is responsible for contracting new generation capacity. APCO, while based in Jordan, has international shareholders and was created to develop, design, finance, construct, test, commission, complete, own, insure, operate and maintain a 554 MW oil shale fired power plant. The plant will ultimately sell its capacity and energy to NEPCO under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

Led by Managing Director of Technical Services, Lenny Golbin, K&M will review the PPA and project design documents, conduct site visits, issue mechanical and electrical completion certificates, witness project acceptance tests and certify test results, and issue project commercial operation certificates. The K&M team will also perform reviews of the turnover packages for each of the power plant systems, review and comment on functional and performance test procedures, and review and certify the functional and performance test results.

This marks K&M’s seventh assignment in Jordan since 2010. We are proud to continue supporting energy expansion in Jordan.

K&M is pleased to announce its newest LNG project with the IFC and GasLog in West Africa.

The IFC and GasLog are developing a LNG terminal situated in the harbor of Freetown, Sierra Leone. The envisioned facility would be comprised of a floating storage unit (FSU), a mooring system, small LNG carriers, and a small onshore facility with regasification, truck and ISO container filling capabilities. With this combination of assets, the LNG terminal company would be able to provide LNG and natural gas in Freetown and deliver small parcels of LNG to ports in Guinea and Liberia.

K&M was contracted by the IFC to perform the demand analysis for potential LNG / gas offtakers in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. K&M’s work includes identifying potential LNG end-users in the three countries, including users in power generation, mining, food & beverage, agribusiness, cement, hospitality, and other business segments. K&M will work with potential end-users to identify the least cost LNG supply chain, estimate the cost of LNG delivered at the end-user site, and assess the business case for switching from their current fuel (diesel, HFO) to LNG. K&M will also develop and manage an online LNG user forum where end-users, aggregators and LNG equipment and service providers could connect.