But her kids thought he was a phoney. David Russell who has made his fortune as the cofounder of Singapore-based private equity group Equis has been spending time aboard the impressive vessel with his family. One George Street, Singapore 049145 Weve got more than enough to invest in that space, and storage is just going to multiply that demand for capital. in Painting/ Art History from the University of Tulsa. In 2005-2010, based in Seoul and Hong Kong, David established three infrastructure private equity funds, including one of the first and largest South Korean private funds. The Tailem Bend Solar Project and Collinsville North Solar Project will: The Tailem Bend Solar Project and Collinsville North Solar Project will be two of Australias lowest cost solar generation projects and will contribute low cost solar power and new jobs into regional communities. Those who want to work 9 to 5 will be successful in certain types of careers, but what we do here requires a lot of hard work. For the guys underneath me, there were only so many senior positions available and it created frustration for those competing for it. MELPOMENE: Have you ever been forced to rethink your life? "He was sitting in the middle of a long dinner table, and there was no one sitting opposite. We think in 5 years, it will revolutionise utility-scale power and in 10 years, it may completely revolutionise power. Business isnt as aggressive as its been dramatised to be. Kahn thought Anton was like Cary Grant. MELPOMENE: Are you worried that the South China Sea dispute will affect investor confidence in the region? Now more than ever, players rightly see themselves as multi-faceted entrepreneurs, and seek ways to leverage their brands in everything from real estate to venture capital. MELPOMENE: Large corporations are almost inevitably hierarchical. But there are a number of governments that came up with programmes to encourage investments in renewable energy. Shane Warne sold the Brighton mansion for about $20m in 2018. Founder and leader David Russell got a yellow Lamborghini; his brother Tim, a personalized orange Porsche. In the Philippines, for example, the government budgets ahead so that they can afford power they need. David Russell, Equis Group CEO, commented, As Asias largest renewable energy developer and investor, the Tailem Bend Solar Project represents an exciting expansion into Australia for Equis and an unique opportunity to leverage our development and construction expertise to deliver low cost, large scale, reliable renewable energy for Australian consumers., Mr Russell noted, By developing the Tailem Bend Solar Project and Snowy Hydro diesel projects together, the combined system will have the capability of providing stable power any time of the day across the entire year. MELPOMENE: Do you find that theres a biased perception against the financial industry, particularly after the 2008 financial crisis? The newspapers report big losses and movies like Too Big to Fail contribute to that negative impression. You see people in boardrooms using some of the terms that we do use in the industry, but the portrayal is largely inaccurate. Ed has managed $13b of electricity regulated and commercial assets as GM for AusNets Transmission and Distribution networks. He is the current Head of Legal for Equis in Australia and is responsible for all legal matters internally and associated with projects. Where does the fallout from the Adani crisis take India now? David Russell, Equis Chairman, said, "Equis has plans to invest US$1 billion in Taiwanese renewable energy, and we expect to play a leading role in developing the Taiwanese renewable energy market, to which the government has made a significant commitment. DAVID: I do, and sometimes you cant avoid people feeling intimidated but you have to continually try to break that barrier down. 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Tell-all memoir: Ronni KahnCredit:Illustration: John Shakespeare. Additionally, he has held various senior roles with companies such as WePower, AbsoluteClimo, European Energy Exchange, ASX Energy and Deutsche Bank. Brighton Grammar is a leading private boys school in Melbourne, understanding boys from ELC to VCE. Consequat id porta nibh. Copyright 2023 Equis Development Pte. Monash University. Photo: Domain. Everything comes back to the numbers. His work has included regulatory advice, project delivery advice, and transactional advice. Readers will recall Pell spent his first night of freedom upon his release in the Carmelite Monastery in Melbournes Kew, before being driven to the Seminary of the Good Shepherd in Sydney's Homebush. His thesis and work explore the . Mindy has over 14 years experience in infrastructure, power and renewable energy in Australia and South East Asia. Employ over 400 people during the construction phase. Instabilities in the region may give others pause, but we seek opportunities amidst them to keep growing. Ive always worked long hours and that hasnt changed. The leafy streets of Brighton are mostly quiet, except at one of the suburbs most famous residences, Melville, the six-bedroom, six-bathroom single-level Middle Crescent mansion. He has held senior roles in energy infrastructure asset owners, developers, and consultancy firms engaged with renewable energy across wind, solar and storage in Australia, Europe, Central America and SE Asia. We acknowledge that our school is on the Country of the people of the Kulin Nations. Does Joo Chiat Need Another Italian Joint? We also bought businesses, made them better and sold them off. We have the saying: You eat what you kill. We are committed to using innovative, responsible and sustainable practices to help Australia reach a carbon free future. MELPOMENE: Was your background crucial to your success? These people deserve to be caught and punished, but they are certainly not the norm in the industry. MELPOMENE: Do you ever watch popular films that depict the financial industry? DAVID: Yeah, a number of them obviously felt that while our relationship was important, it was based on our work together, so they were more likely to do business with Macquarie than some guy whos just starting out. My partners and I put everything into this businessfinancially and personallyand if it were to fail, we would sink with the ship. David currently resides in Singapore and was on Singapore Tatlers list of Most Influential People in 2016 and 2018. "Australia represents one of the most exciting solar power generation markets globally and Equis expects to build over $1 billion of new projects over the next 24-36 months," director David Russell said in the press release. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Bloomberg View columnist Barry Ritholtz looks at the people and ideas that shape markets, investing and business. Andrew has over 20 years' experience with energy infrastructure projects, specialising in thermal energy project development and construction. But most importantly, if you want to be successful, youll have to work hard. We acknowledge that our school is on the Country of the people of the Kulin Nations. The other guests in the restaurant said they had to pinch themselves. He has delivered assets in Europe, Middle East and Australia. MELPOMENE: The project developers dont have the discretion to make decisions locally? The clearance of funds that day in January 2018 marked the conclusion of the biggest renewable energy sale ever completed. In the battery sector, the prices are falling but their performance is improving. Marsh was revealed as the buyer of a knock-down-rebuild in Mosman for $6.88 million, as well as a waterfront in Noosa Heads for about $4 million, also slated for redevelopment. He studied Law/Economics at Monash University and worked as an energy and utilities lawyer with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom in Washington and with Minter Ellison in Melbourne. Once I became nobody, a lot of those people actually went silent. People say that Asia is developing, but their frameworks are far more developed than those in Europe. The pieces, which covered the strategies big businesses used to trim their tax burden, ended up being rewritten and republished. If anything we are quite an introverted group, but we knew what we were talking about. He also has extensive investment and Mergers and Acquisitions experience in renewable energy across Asia. "It was like the last supper," one onlooker said. In contrast, if you look at Spain, the government gave concessions to the developers but re-regulated when they realised they couldnt afford to buy power. Theres a lot of information coming at you and you need to have the ability to identify the issue thats embedded in that information. Congratulations to the Class of 2020, recording our best ever results. 2023 Tatler Asia Limited. Several months earlier a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), with partners including the China Investment Corporation sovereign wealth fund, had agreed to buy the renewable energy asset portfolio of Equis, a Singapore-headquartered independent infrastructure asset manager, for $5 billion. We were also growing rapidly and did not want to give our competitors advance knowledge of what we were doing. US Jobs Report and Powell Testimony Take Center Stage: Eco Week, Bond Mavens Favor Curve Wagers for Next Encounter With Jobs Data, Bank of Canada Risks Falling Too Far Behind Fed, Scotia Says, Feds Daly Says More Rate Hikes Likely Needed to Cool Inflation, Colombia Prices Rise Less than Forecast to a Fresh 24-Year High, Porsche, Ferrari E-Fuel Push at Heart of EU Engine Debate. He was charming and once flew her to Hong Kong for dinner. The former ABC chief economics editor is writing a book for Hardie Grant, Rewrite the Story. She managed a renewable energy portfolio of over 625MW in Australia, sat on the board of Avertas Waste to Energy as well as managed transport and social infrastructure projects. China Equities: Yesterdays Story or More Compelling Than Ever? MELPOMENE: Why did you decide to target Asian markets? So while I was growing and being mentored, I had that slight frustration. Prior to joining Equis, Liz held planning and permitting roles at Goldwind. A good thing, no doubt. These governments need to grow and theyre putting in place very stable regulatory regimes. Here in Singapore, we talk about how to implement their strategies as well as manage the risk consistently across the different geographies. DAVID: Ive been forced to rethink of my priorities and came to the realisation that family is always number one to me. Youre always very careful when you speak to people and you disagree politely, rarely do people ever thump the table and storm out like they do in movies. I think that helps people remain human in this business. Bachelor of Laws (Hons)/ Bachelor of Economics (Hons) 1988 - 1993; Skills. MELPOMENE: How has it been different at Equis? And you find that project developers tend to be more risk seeking, so its better to have someone whos more risk averse to balance their decision-making. MELPOMENE: Did your legal and finance background help you in this field? "I understand now how people can love a person who does awful things. Damian has 23 years of infrastructure investment experience, with over 17 years experience in Asia Pacific, and has completed over AUD$ 27 billion of transactions across various sectors including renewable and conventional energy, telecommunications, waste, greenfield development, PPPs, and transportation. Representatives for the Catholic Church and Pell did not return calls and emails on Thursday. He was far, far from perfect. 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David Russell is the founder and CEO of Equis, a company that evolved from its roots as a funds management business to an infrastructure asset development company, Equis Development, in 2019. Bryce Paterson is a legal professional with over 10 years of experience both internationally and domestically in Australia. David Russell, Equis Chairman, said, "As AsiaPacific's largest renewable energy IPP, Equis is pleased to be playing an important role in Taiwan's transition to lowcost, clean energy. In addition, Equis has completed a further 33 utility scale renewable energy projects in Asia over the last 3 years or on average 1 project every 5 weeks. The company was part of reportedly the largest global renewable energy transaction in history in 2018 when its subsidiary, Equis Energy, was sold to Global Infrastructure Partners for US$5 billion. MELPOMENE: How do you envision the use of renewables in ten years time? 1 George Street #23-03 One George Street, Singapore 049145 Tel: +65 6220 0040 Modest Rally in Asian Equities Expected as Regional Economies Remain Supportive and Valuations Reasonable, Dubai-Based Real Estate Developer Omniyat Launches Ultra-Luxury Beachfront Residences, Singapore Buyers Show Strong Interest in Mixed-Use Development in Londons Vauxhall, This Residential Tower in Dubai Features Interiors by Pagani, What to Expect at the Newly Reopened I12 Katong Retail Mall, Are You a HNWI? MELPOMENE: Given that R&D in this sector is changing so quickly, are you concerned that your solar and wind facilities might become obsolete? 2023 High Net Worth All rights reserved. Chief Executive Officer @ Equis; Senior Managing Director @ Macquarie Group; Education. The combined power and large-scale generation certificates price of the Tailem Bend Solar Project is approximately 40% less than prevailing South Australian market prices, delivering significant savings to South Australian consumers. The Projects will involve a capital investment of approximately A$400 million. David is a Managing Director of Equis and has 28 years of infrastructure and private equity experience. Apparently Pell was flanked by a number of priests. Some $1.3 billion of that was assumed liabilities, but still, it was a landmark: $3.7 billion of equity, the vast majority of it in unrestricted cash. I like to think that I dont have a fear of heights, but the idea of jumping out of a plane and not knowing for sure if the parachute is going to work can be intimidating. He has previously been Middle East editor of Euromoney, editor of Asiamoney, investment editor of the Australian Financial Review and a correspondent on emerging markets and sovereign wealth for numerous publications worldwide. We may no longer need to build big cathedral type power facilities and expensive distribution systems. DAVID: If youre intelligent, adaptable, and willing to work hard, you can be very successful without a legal or finance background. He led Equis development of wind and hydro projects in India. In October 2017, Equis sold Equis Energy to a Global Infrastructure Partners led consortium for US$5 billion, the largest renewable energy transaction in history at the time. Founding partner and chief executive David Russell has reportedly paid close to $20 million for the Melbourne estate in Brighton of cricket legend Shane Warne, and added a Noosa getaway of his own when he paid $18 million for the Sunshine Beach house of IT entrepreneur Danny Wallis. All rights reserved. Its not all hindsight. Do you worry about that? Please try again later. DAVID: Yes, and theyve gone down a certain path that they may not even be aware of until they eventually just take it too far in trying to make money. But there are a number of governments that came up with programmes to encourage investments in renewable energy. EY Entrepreneur of the Year (Ernst & Young Singapore), Senior Alumni Award (National University of Singapore School of Business). The esteem that the businesswoman turned social entrepreneur is held in is revealed by the calibre of the blurbs on the cover: ABC journalist Annabel Crabb gets star billing above former governor-general Quentin Bryce, while Crabbs boss, ABC chair Ita Buttrose, has to make do with the back page. We think that the biggest renewable energy market is solar and we have to keep ahead of that technology curve. Save 397,400 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year or the equivalent of removing 83,860 passenger vehicles from Australian roads. You cant teach smarts, you either have a certain level of capability or you dont, and you have to be adaptable in this business. I dont think solar and wind per se will be obsolete, theyll always be utilised because theyre efficient and environment friendly. Some of these people want to take a shortcut instead of working hard and they may cut corners, which is unlawful. DAVID: Technology and mindsets are evolving rapidly. DAVID K. RUSSELL. People hear about all these guys making so much money and they fear that its because theyre doing something theyre not supposed to be doing. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. At one point, Pell who was dressed in what one observer described as "priestly regalia" gave a short speech and toast. Called the Lady E, it's available to charter for a cool $767,840 a week. They said that if youre willing to build the facility, were willing to buy that power from you at a fixed price for 20 or 25 years, and that gave us a lot of confidence.