Low Carbon announces the appointment of John J. Graves as CIO – Low Carbon Renewables Fund and nomination as Chairman, Low Carbon Investment Management
Low Carbon is pleased to announce that John J. Graves, a current member of the Investment Committee of Low Carbon Investment Management, is to become CIO of the Low Carbon Renewables Fund. Graves has also been nominated as Chairman of Low Carbon Investment Management pending FCA approval.
The Low Carbon Renewables Fund is at the heart of the company’s climate impact mission. The Fund will help accelerate the transition from fossil fuels to a fully decarbonized future, and harness Low Carbon’s deep and long-standing expertise of creating megawatts of clean power across proven technologies including onshore and offshore wind, onshore and floating solar power, battery storage and energy-from-waste. The Fund will target large-scale renewable energy projects, with a focus on European and North American markets.
Before joining Low Carbon’s Investment Committee in October 2021, Mr. Graves held the position of Assistant Senior Investment Officer, Tangible Assets at the Washington State Investment Board (WSIB) for over a decade. At WSIB, he led more than $5 billion in investments across 27 private fund vehicles, including multiple direct and co-investments on behalf of WSIB. This included over $1 billion in renewable projects which stand to deliver over 3 GW of renewable power capacity in the US, Europe and Latin America across onshore wind, solar, solar/battery and hydropower. In addition to renewable energy, Mr. Graves also led WSIB’s minerals and mining investments, investing nearly $1 billion in base, alkali and precious metals critical to the energy transition including copper, nickel, cobalt, platinum, vanadium and lithium. Prior to helping launch Washington’s Tangible Assets program in 2012, Mr. Graves was an Investment Officer in WSIB’s Risk Management and Asset Allocation function, with primary responsibility for implementing a comprehensive risk management framework for WSIB’s $150 billion commingled trust fund (CTF) pension portfolio in addition to the Permanent Funds and Guaranteed Education Tuition (GET) Program, among others. Prior to WSIB Mr. Graves was a Portfolio Manager at JP Morgan Asset Management and Rockefeller & Company, the multi-family office based in NYC.
With more than 20 years of relevant experience as a senior institutional investor and limited partner, Mr. Graves will continue to leverage his expertise in portfolio construction, risk management and customised investment programmes in his new role. The appointment will help accelerate Low Carbon’s global expansion, assisting in the top-quality execution and delivery of clean energy to the US and other new markets.
Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Graves said: “I’m honoured to be asked by Low Carbon’s leadership to build out this investment business at such a critical time in the energy transition. I am very fortunate to have had a unique vantage point over the past 10 years at WSIB as a direct investor in the energy transition across the entire portfolio of renewable energy technologies, while investing simultaneously in the minerals that ultimately power the decarbonised grid. I believe the energy transition is happening with greater velocity than most market participants realise, and I’m delighted to place both feet in the future with Low Carbon.”
Commenting on the appointment, Roy Bedlow, Chief Executive and Founder of Low Carbon said: “Low Carbon are delighted that John will be taking on such a pivotal role at the company. John shares our determination to address climate change through investment in large-scale renewable energy projects and, having negotiated billions of dollars in investments during his career to date, his credentials are second to none. John’s appointment forms a key part of our plan to achieve 20GW of renewable energy capacity and net zero by 2030.”
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About Low Carbon
Low Carbon is a leading renewable energy investment and asset management company committed to the development and operation of renewable energy at scale. Low Carbon invests into both renewable energy developers and projects across a range of renewable energy technologies including solar PV, wind, energy storage, waste-to-energy and energy efficiency. Low Carbon, a certified B Corp, has a proven track record in the development, construction, financing and management of renewable energy assets and remains involved in the projects for the long term with a dedicated asset management team that manages assets on balance sheet and for third parties. With a significant international renewable energy pipeline in development, Low Carbon is well-positioned to capitalise on opportunities as the need for renewable energy and energy security increases.