Power & Utilities Associate Director - Finance - WACC

The Team

KPMG’s Infrastructure Team in the UK consists of c400 professionals and is widely recognised as one of the world’s leading independent financial and business advisers in infrastructure.

We provide in-depth advice on the strategic, financial, regulatory and commercial issues driving investments in infrastructure across Transport, Power & Utilities, and Social Infrastructure in the UK and internationally. Our work includes market and policy design, economic analysis, deal structuring and execution, as well as strategic and transaction advice to enable private and public capital to fund infrastructure. We also work closely with other functions within KPMG to advise clients on mergers and acquisitions, valuations, tax, accounting, and due diligence.

The utilities sector is a key business area for the Infrastructure Team and encompasses work for the large clients in the sector including all of the leading UK energy and water companies. We provide in depth strategic and technical advice on corporate finance issues, corporate financial management; regulatory finance, regulatory policy, business and financial planning, as well as other issues affecting value. We are widely recognised by many industry stakeholders as one of the most innovative advisors influencing the future of the sector.

Our business is continuously expanding and we are looking for high quality candidates to support our Power & Utilities business with a particular focus on financial and economic analysis, including cost of capital estimation, financeability assessments, risk and scenario analysis, financial modelling, investment appraisal & valuation.

The Role

• You would be joining the leading provider of regulatory finance consultancy services in the utilities sector.
• While you will have specific responsibilities for contributing towards the team’s regulatory finance business in utilities, there will also be opportunities to work in other sectors.
• Working closely with the director for finance in the utilities sector, you will help lead and further develop the team, increasing our presence in the sector.
• This will include identifying new opportunities, contributing towards winning work, and coaching junior members of staff.
• You will build relationships with key clients across the sector, as well as with other advisors (e.g. legal and engineering).
• The projects that you will advise on will be high profile and varied. For example, in recent years we have advised on cost of capital, financeability, risk analysis, financing strategy, financial modelling, state aid, Competition and Markets Authority re-determinations, major transactions and much more.
• There is no ‘typical project’. You will need to apply a structured strategic approach to problem solving, drawing on established economic and corporate finance principles, while having the capacity to think creatively.
• You will be leading the delivery of key projects. This will include delegating tasks to team members, constructing project plans, managing client interactions, tracking budgets, and complying with the company’s risk processes.
• You will need to be comfortable managing, coaching, and mentoring junior staff on specific projects.
• You will maintain a good understanding of regulatory finance issues in the regulated sectors e.g. on setting the cost of capital or assessing financeability, as well as how regulatory mechanisms interact with or impact the actual financing of regulated businesses

The Person

• Educated to a degree level in a quantitative field such as Finance, Economics, Mathematics or similar will be preferred, although candidates with highly relevant, equivalent experience, will also be considered
• Have significant experience in the utilities sector, either as a regulatory policy maker (gained at a regulatory office or industry) or as a consultant specialising in regulatory or corporate finance, with specific expertise in WACC estimation and the application of the Capital Asset Pricing Model
• Have a detailed knowledge of the current UK regulatory regimes and regulatory finance mechanics for utilities, their application and impact on notional and actual capital structures and business performance, including the role of the WACC in allowed revenue estimation
• Demonstrate strong working knowledge of economic and financial theory and its application – for example risk-return trade-offs, fixed income pricing and valuation, capital structure, asset pricing, and beta estimation – preferably with experience in applying corporate finance concepts in the regulated networks space
• Be highly skilled in quantitative economic and financial analysis. The ideal candidate will have experience leading projects with extensive WACC analysis elements, and /or have detailed knowledge and experience of financial econometrics and statistics, ideally applied in the utilities sectors
• Have a sound knowledge of finances and financial structures of regulated utilities and their treatment within the regulatory WACC framework (we will consider candidates with deep expertise in financial analysis even if they do not have econometrics experience)
• Provide compelling and well-thought out solutions to complex economic and financial problems, being able to provide persuasive and self-assured responses in a credible manner
• Bring excellent quantitative analysis (Stata or equivalent), Excel and Powerpoint skills
• Bring exceptional written communication skills, with a proven ability to produce high-quality, technically rigorous reports for expert audiences, including regulators, investors, and legal advisors. Must be able to structure complex arguments clearly, present quantitative evidence effectively, and draft content suitable for scrutiny in formal regulatory or dispute resolution contexts
• Be comfortable and experienced in an external facing role and in presenting to clients
• Be an independent thinker with the ability to identify problems and contribute to the development of solutions, helping us to remain at the cutting edge of innovative thinking in the sector
• Relish the opportunity for interaction and dialogue with companies, investors, regulators and other stakeholders, and with a host of functions across KPMG
• Have experience of managing medium size project teams, with a focus on mentoring and coaching junior staff (with or without a finance background)
• Be a proven team player who can demonstrate a clear desire to manage teams, who can gain the trust and support of internal colleagues
• All UK staff who have not passed a Financial Services Authority (FSA) approved exam will be required to do so.

A final word from us…

Everybody likes to say they’re different... but we really think we are.

We’re hugely proud of what we’ve managed to achieve so far, but we’re only just getting started. We’re looking for people to grow with us and are committed to helping everybody reach their destination, regardless of what that is.   

Should you choose to join us, you can expect an attractive benefits package, which typically includes:

Financial

• A competitive salary
• Pension options
• Bonus scheme that reflects firm and individual performance
• Rail and Oyster Card reimbursement
• Staff discounts
• Access to preferential banking

Lifestyle

• 25 days holiday, with the option to buy up to an extra 10 days, plus an additional day of leave for your birthday
• Competitive maternity and paternity leave
• 6 days of work time each year for volunteering
• Daily lunch allowance
• Flextra – a flexible benefits scheme that allows you to choose benefits for you and your family, such as, travel insurance, critical illness insurance, dental insurance and discounted gym memberships

Health and Wellbeing

• Private medical insurance
• Personal accident insurance
• Life assurance of 4 x salary with the option to increase this via flexible benefits scheme
• Access to private, remote GP appointments anytime and anywhere via a smartphone
• Online health risk questionnaire
• BeWell employee assistance programme for confidential information, advice, or counselling for life’s daily challenges
• Group Income Protection

No matter what skills you bring to our team, you’ll be surrounded by spirited, naturally curious people. People who want to learn from you, and who’ll also teach you a thing or two along the way. It’s how we make a collective impact, greater than the sum of its parts.

And if this isn’t the role for you but you like what you see, keep in touch. There will be other opportunities to join us.

For more details about a career at KPMG, visit: www.kpmgcareers.co.uk