Gurpreet Chugh joined ICF International as consulting director, energy, in 2013. He has close to 15 years’ experience in the global energy sector and has worked on identifying, evaluating and structuring private M&A deals in E&P in West Africa, Russia, Indonesia and India. He also advises multilateral institutions and government bodies on energy sector issues. He started his career in 2001, joining CRISIL’s energy consulting business. He subsequently worked in London for Gas Strategies Consulting and the Suntera Group, a private equity group. He moved back to India in 2010 and led the natural resources consulting practice at CRISIL.
Two assignments stand out in particular for Chugh. The first was an assignment he worked on with the Ministry of Coal for the coal auction process, during his time at CRISIL. The project involved designing a transparent auction and valuation methodology for coal blocks. The second is an ongoing assignment for UNDP. This offgrid project is aimed at installing rooftop solar systems at primary healthcare centres in remote areas of Manipur. Despite being a small project, it is very important to Chugh owing to its major social implications. Once complete, the project will ensure that the primary healthcare centres have sufficient electricity to properly store vaccines and medicines.
According to Chugh, renewable energy has kicked off in the past three to four years, especially with the National Solar Mission. The government’s intent to build clean generation capacity and position India as a leader in solar, coupled with a reduction in renewable power installation costs, has been a major growth driver. With further innovations and cost reductions in energy storage, renewable energy will grow at a brisk pace. However, the sector is facing a number of challenges, similar to the conventional generation sector. The biggest challenges are power curtailment and limited offtake by discoms, despite the must-run status of renewables. Hence, policymakers need to ensure that renewables are brought into the grid and balanced using ancillary services, etc. Discom health is another issue.
Chugh believes his key strength is his deep understanding of the energy sector and his ability to quickly analyse issues from a client perspective. His management style focuses on delegating responsibility, empowering people and motivating them to deliver.
Chugh is a chartered financial analyst, and has an MBA in finance from the Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, and a bachelor’s in engineering from DIT, Delhi University. A sports enthusiast, he enjoys playing tennis, badminton and cricket.