Lightsource BP appoints Ricardo Folgado as new Structured Finance Director

Lightsource BP, a global market leader in the development, acquisition and long-term management of international large-scale solar projects and smart energy solutions, is pleased to announce the appointment of Ricardo Folgado as its new Structured Finance Director.

Ricardo joins from General Electric, where he spent the last eight years focused on energy finance, holding several roles covering global investor strategy and partnerships, as well as structuring direct investments of both debt and equity and PPAs across various business units. Before General Electric, Ricardo specialised in financial services strategy, first for seven years at Accenture and then for a year at HSBC based in London. He holds a BSc in Finance from Oxford Brookes, a PgDip in Corporate Finance from London Business School and a MSc in (Energy & Trade) Political Economy from Kings College, London. At Lightsource BP, Ricardo will be responsible for structuring investments and PPAs, as well as fundraising.

Commenting on the announcement, Paul McCartie, Lightsource BP Group CIO, said: “Ricardo is a valued addition to the Lightsource BP team, particularly as investors increasingly deploy capital into solar assets. His knowledge of financial services strategy will help us better navigate the market’s shift to unsubsidised renewable energy and deliver on our 6GW growth pipeline in the US, India, Europe and the Middle East.”

Over the last seven years, Lightsource BP has raised over $3 billion in project debt and equity capital, including the largest ever sterling-denominated renewables bond (£245m). In addition, Lightsource BP has recently announced the creation of an Indian private equity fund ($330 million raised) as well as raising $200 million of corporate growth equity capital from BP. Through its partnership with BP, Lightsource BP represents a strategic and powerful partnership between one of the largest energy providers in the world and an industry-leading solar power company. The company has grown to be Europe’s largest utility scale solar photovoltaic developer and operator, with 2GW of solar installations under management.