Macquarie appoints Asia head of renewables

Australian financial group Macquarie has hired Anton Rohner in a newly created position as head of Asian renewables at Macquarie Capital Advisers in Hong Kong, where he will look after renewable energy investments.

Rohner will report to Andrew Low, Asia head of Macquarie Capital Advisers, and Oliver Yates, who leads Macquarie’s climate change practice.

Rohner joins Macquarie from renewable energy developer Roaring 40s, a joint venture between Hong Kong-based electricity company CLP Group and Hydro Tasmania, where he was general manager for Asia. Rohner developed and implemented the company’s strategy for the Asia region and set up a number of wind farm projects in China.

Macquarie says it is stepping up its expansion into a market in Asia that it values at more than $20 billion and expects to grow by 15–20% a year for the next five years.

“Renewable energy is one of the most exciting growth markets in Asia and we want to be a leader as we are in other new markets,” said Low. “China and India are already two of the most important renewable markets worldwide and, given their potential and investment plans, their importance is set to rise.”

Macquarie Group manages renewable assets worth $1.16 billion in Canada, Europe and the US, said Yates. “Anton will help us build an Asian investment pipeline that will complement existing investments we manage in the wind, landfill gas, biomass and solar sectors,” he added.