A Leading Sustainable Resources Company: Sindicatum

Sustainability lies at the heart of its business. We undertake our work because we believe in the strength of our company, of our business and in the importance of what we do in helping nations achieve their dual goals of economic growth and protecting the environment. As a result, we are highly motivated to achieve our goals.

The key markets of South and Southeast Asia are perennially short of power and have adopted strong policies and programs to promote renewable energy development. A significant proportion of the build-out of renewable energy capacity in these markets will come from distributed energy assets (5 to 50 MW projects). Such projects require a substantial knowledge of the relevant country’s social and economic fabric, the ability to operate in difficult environments by involving local counterparties and the skill to manage smaller assets cost-effectively.

Sindicatum Renewable Energy Company Pte. Ltd (Singapore) (“SREC”) develops, owns and operates clean energy projects in South and South East Asia. At the core of SREC’s track record is the proven ability to identify, develop, invest, finance and operate small-scale renewable energy projects in its target markets of South and South-East Asia. A key feature of each of SREC’s projects is a secure supply of fuel which ensures its projects are not constrained in their ability to generate power or exposed to fuel price risk.

Having developed and financed 17 renewable energy projects, SREC is preparing to expand its asset base with the addition of a number of development projects in South East Asia and India.SREC is owned by the ISCCP and Sindicatum Sustainable Resources.

Sindicatum’sSustainability Pledge

Despite the technologicalprogress, the global economy remains entirely dependent on “natural capital” for its existence and growth. The planet’s natural capital includes all of the ecosystem services which we take for granted, but are provided for free and without which our society could not survive. Such services include the provision of water, food, waste decomposition,and fresh air. In conjunction with direct energy sources, such as the sun, such services are required to create the commodities upon which we rely in order to live. As the global economy continues to expand its places demands on the planet which cannot be met.

Since the industrial revolution, natural capital has been gradually depleted and commodities from aquatic life to forests have become increasingly scarce. What’s more, such commodities are often produced from unsustainable, fossil sources, which have a finite life and in the case of fossil fuels, create global environmental risk through climate change.

The traditional economic model of resource utilization is a linear process by which natural capital is exploited, creating waste, pollution and environmental degradation:

Sindicatum seeks to redress this balance through the production of long-term “sustainable resources”, in order to help displace our reliance on unsustainable sources. We aim to create supplies of key commodities required for the functioning of a global economy which is viable into perpetuity. Through this, we aim to help facilitate the transition to a system which utilizes natural capital without depleting it.

Sustainability is crucial to Sindicatum’s investment approach and to its ability to meet the expectations of its stakeholders – The Companybelieves it has a direct link to its long-term profitable performance. The theme of “resource scarcity” is central to its strategy. Sindicatumbelieves that, globally, economic development (and thus increasing demand for resources) will continue to strain natural resources worldwide.

In an increasingly resource-constrained world, it is crucial to work within environmental and social limits and our Investment Approval Process recognizes this.

The company recognizes that all of its investments depend on its relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and, in particular, the local communities where our projects are undertaken.Sindicatum’sbusiness model, therefore, seeks to meet, daily, the highest standards of sustainability, governance, and ethical investing, along with a strong emphasis on health and safety.

Sindicatum also considers sustainability to be critical to the management of its most crucial asset – its staff. The company aims is to promote a working environment where people feel they are “in it for the long-run”. It aims to ensure people feel they and their contribution are appreciated and that a proper balance between work and their life outside Sindicatum is maintained.

CEO Corner

Assaad Razzouk, CEO:Assaad is Group Chief Executive of Sindicatum Sustainable Resources. At Sindicatum, Assaad is responsible for overall strategy, stakeholder relationships and the project investments managed by Sindicatum’s business units. Under Mr.Razzouk’s leadership, Sindicatum has developed a global portfolio of projects on a principal basis and established and grown business units in Bangkok, Beijing, Jakarta, Manila, New Delhi, Singapore, Taiyuan (Shanxi Province, China) and Washington D.C. Through its local business units, Sindicatum has to date committed more than $400m to greenhouse gas reduction and sustainability projects, 90% of which are in Asia and has won multiple awards testifying to its excellence in sustainability and renewable energy.

From 1993 to 2002, Assaad was an investment banker at Nomura International Plc in London, where he was last Deputy Head of Global Corporate Finance. At Nomura International, he advised on several billion dollars of equity and debt capital raisings and invested several hundred million dollars of Nomura’s capital in private equity and principal finance investments in the emerging markets, each investment resulting in a profitable exit for Nomura.

From 1988 to 1993, Assaad was at Price Waterhouse in New York City where his last position was as Manager, International Capital Markets. At Price Waterhouse, he advised the Government of Indonesia on the privatization of state-owned enterprises from 1991 to 1993, with an emphasis on the transportation sector, and specialized in advising Fortune 500 corporations in cross-border structured lease financings.

Assaad’s outside interests include founding South East Asia’s first Middle Eastern contemporary art gallery, Sana Gallery. He is a graduate of Syracuse University (Summa Cum Laude) and holds an MBA from Columbia Business School. 

“We are the developer, owner,and operator of clean energy projects in key markets that are perennially short of electricity, particularly in non-urbanized areas.”