About Us
ABPS Infrastructure Advisory (ABPS Infra) is a consultancy organisation set up by professionals with wide range of experience in commercial, financial, regulatory and technical spheres of the energy and utilities sector.
Since its establishment in 2005, ABPS Infra has established its presence in the energy and utilities sector and has executed large number of assignments for clients comprising Regulatory Commissions, Utilities, Project Developers and Strategic Investors.
ABPS Infra has been promoted by
Ajit Pandit, Balwant Joshi, Palaniappan Meyyappan & Suresh Gehani
Ajit Pandit
Ajit has over 11 years of experience in the power sector. His experience in the power sector spans the technical, commercial, regulatory and financial spheres. He has worked extensively in the power sector in India in varied capacities such as Private Power Project Developer, Regulatory Advisor, Management Consultant, etc. He brings with him the regulatory perspective and is well versed with risks and commercial arrangements associated with development, construction and commissioning of various generation, transmission and distribution schemes. Besides his skills in project structuring and financial engineering, with his qualifications in electrical engineering, he also brings to the team expertise in analyzing technical issues associated with the power system.
Ajit commenced his employment with Larsen and Toubro Limited and was a key member of the Project Development team constituted to explore investment and development opportunities in power and other infrastructure sectors. Subsequently, he moved to ICRA Advisory Services and worked extensively on regulatory assignments, addressing regulatory issues in development of renewable energy, etc. and led teams in his capacity as Project Manager. Later, he joined the Energy & Utilities practice of Deloitte and has extensively worked on electricity market development and sector reform related activities.
Ajit is an Electrical Engineer and holds a Masters degree in Management Studies from the University of Bombay.
Balawant Joshi
Balawant Joshi has more than 15 years of experience in energy and utilities sector in India. This experience spans from operations and maintenance of power systems to financial modeling and valuation, from utility to consulting, from technology to regulatory, etc. Further, he has worked in the entire value chain in power sector, i.e., generation, transmission, distribution and supply.
He started his career with Tata Electric Companies where he served for about eight years. He joined ICRA Advisory Services in September 1999 and was Head – Regulatory & Transaction Practice, before joining Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu as a Senior Manager in Energy & Utilities Practice. He was Director in Energy & Utilities Practice, when he quit to start ABPS Infrastructure Advisory, where he is the Managing Partner.
Balawant is a well known expert on regulatory matters concerning electricity industry. He has advised Regulators in several important States such as Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, etc., on a variety of issues including generation, transmission and distribution tariff related issues. He has also advised public sector utilities and private sector entities in several States on various regulatory matters such as Tariff Regulations, market development, intra-State ABT, transmission pricing, renewable energy pricing, etc. He has worked on regulatory matters in more than 20 States in the country.
Balawant actively participated in the working of Sukhthankar Committee set up by the Government of Maharashtra to take a holistic view of the water and sanitation sector in the State. He has also been involved in the drafting of the proposed ‘Renewable Energy Law’ for India, intended to ensure development of all renewable energy resources. Recently, he has been appointed by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), Government of India, as a Country Expert on Demand Side Management Program of International Energy Agency (IEA).
Balawant has regularly contributed articles to various journals such as Green Energy. He has also contributed a chapter in a book titled ‘Wind Power Development in India’ published by World Institute of Sustainable Energy. He has been a member of several committees set up by Government and/or Industry Organisations to review and recommend critical issues associated with the sector. Balawant is an electrical engineer with post graduation in both finance and software technology.
Palaniappan M
Palaniappan has around 11 years of management consulting experience, with around 7 years of experience in Energy Sector consulting in India. His experience in the energy sector spans the commercial, regulatory and financial spheres. He has worked in the areas of Business Planning, Demand-Supply Assessment, Techno Economic Feasibility, Valuation, Due Diligence, Financial Appraisal, Pricing, and Regulatory Affairs. He has led the teams working on regulatory assignments in Maharashtra, Tamilnadu, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi.
Palaniappan M. began his career with Bharat Bijlee Limited where he worked in the industrial engineering department, before resigning to pursue post-graduation in Financial Management. After completing his post-graduation, he joined Tata Economic Consultancy Services, where he worked in the area of management consulting, including revival of sick industries and financial appraisal. He then worked in ICRA Advisory Services in the Energy Group for around six years, where he was the Head-Energy Practice, before quitting to start ABPS Infrastructure Advisory.
Palaniappan is a Production Engineer and holds a Masters degree in Management Studies from the University of Bombay. He has also completed his Diploma in Business Finance from ICFAI, Hyderabad.
Suresh Gehani
Suresh has around 12 years experience in the energy sector in India. His experience in the power sector spans the commercial, regulatory and financial spheres. He has worked in the areas of Development of Independent Power Projects, Finalization of Project Contracts, Business Planning, Demand-Supply Assessment, Techno Economic Feasibility, Valuation, Financial Appraisal, Pricing, Risk Assessment and Regulatory Affairs.
Suresh started his career with Ispat Industries Limited, where he was a key member of the team involved in winning the 468 MW Gas based Vemagiri Power Project through the first tariff based international competitive bidding process in India. He joined Reliance Power Limited in November 1997 and was an active team member of the Project Development team for developing several projects. He joined ICRA Advisory Services in January 2001 in the Energy Group and was the Head - Power Sector, before resigning to start ABPS Infrastructure Advisory.
Suresh has graduated in Mechanical Engineering from Regional Engineering College, Bhopal and holds a Masters degree in Business Administration from Nagpur University.