Enlight Renewable Energy is a company that develops, finances, constructs, owns and operates utility-scale renewable energy projects. Enlight operates across the three largest renewable segments today: solar, wind, and energy storage. To learn more, Pulse 2.0 interviewed Enlight Renewable Energy CEO Gilad Yavetz.
Gilad Yavetz’s Background
Yavetz co-founded Enlight with Zafrir Yoeli and Amit Paz in 2008 and has served as CEO since the company’s inception. And Yavetz said:
“Before Enlight, I was the VP of Marketing and Sales at BVR, a hi-tech company specializing in simulation and training systems for the defense industry. My educational background includes an LLB from Hebrew University and an MBA from Tel Aviv University. These experiences have shaped my expertise and drive in leading Enlight Renewable Energy towards continued success in the renewable energy sector.”
Formation Of Enlight
How did the idea for Enlight Renewable Energy come together? Yavetz shared:
“Throughout my time leading the sales organization at BVR, I was fortunate to travel to a lot of other countries. During these travels, I witnessed a renewable energy revolution occurring in Europe – from rooftop solar installations to onshore wind farms being developed. At the time, Israel had essentially no renewable energy projects in development, and I wanted to bring my home country into this energy revolution. When we first started Enlight, we developed small-scale rooftop solar, which quickly caught on and evolved into large wind and solar utility-scale projects. After reaching a meaningful scale in Israel, we took our expertise abroad to nine European countries and now operate in the US through our subsidiary Clēnera.”
Favorite Memory
What has been Yavetz’s favorite memory working for Enlight Renewable Energy so far? Yavetz reflected:
“It has been an amazing journey creating Enlight and working to address the challenge of global access to renewable energy. Reflecting on the remarkable growth of our company, from its humble beginnings to achieving a market cap exceeding $2 billion, fills me with an immense sense of pride. While there are so many to choose from, my favorite memories are when our wind, solar, and storage projects reached commercial operation and began generating clean and sustainable electricity. These projects have and continue to help save thousands of tons of CO2 from being emitted into the atmosphere. Moreover, our clean energy solutions not only promote sustainability but also provide cost savings to our customers, making it a win-win scenario.”
Challenges Faced
What are some of the challenges Yavetz faced in building the company? Yavetz acknowledged:
“Building a company in the renewable energy sector comes with its fair share of challenges. Developing large-scale and complex renewable energy projects requires meticulous attention to detail and a great deal of patience. Some projects can span over five years, demanding long-term commitment and perseverance. As a developer, in order to successfully launch a project, we need to secure real estate, interconnection to the grid and permits from various government authorities and local stakeholders. Each of these elements presents its own complexities and demands our careful attention and expertise. We’ve successfully developed over 4 GW of renewable energy projects globally, and while we may think we’ve seen it all at this point, every new project brings its own set of development challenges. That said, I am confident in our ability to tackle any obstacle that comes our way and continue our journey of advancing renewable energy solutions.”
Core Capabilities
What are Enlight Renewable Energy’s core capabilities? Yavetz explained:
“We are a pure-play greenfield developer of utility-scale renewable energy projects as well as an independent power producer (IPP). This means we continue to manage projects once they are operational and reap the benefits of long-term cash flow for the 30 to 40+ years that they produce electricity.”
“This unique business model brings us several advantages. First, it allows us to maximize project returns by controlling the entire lifecycle, from development to financing. We optimize every aspect, ensuring efficient procurement and construction. Second, our self-sufficiency drives growth. With a strong pipeline of projects in development, we have the freedom to develop projects independently, fueling our expansion. Further, our low-cost capital is supported by the recurring cash flow from our operational projects. This financial stability enables us to accelerate growth as the energy transition progresses.”
“At Enlight, we’re all about building projects from the ground up and holding onto them for long-term value. This approach drives returns, fuels growth, and positions us as a trusted player in the renewable energy sector.”
Evolution Of Enlight Renewable Energy
How has Enlight Renewable Energy evolved since launching? Yavetz pointed out:
“Enlight has established an impressive track record in developing some of the world’s largest and most intricate renewable energy projects, surpassing 4 GW of total capacity. We have diversified our portfolio by cultivating experience across all major renewable energy technologies. We started with solar, expanded into wind, and have now solidified our position in battery storage. This strategic progression allows us to harness the potential of multiple clean energy sources. In addition to technological growth, our company has expanded its global footprint across Israel, Europe, and North America, giving us access to the largest renewable energy markets in the developed world and opening doors for unparalleled opportunities for further expansion and advancement.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of Enlight Renewable Energy’s most significant milestones? Yavetz cited:
“Enlight has achieved several significant milestones that have propelled our growth and success in the industry. In February 2023, we became a U.S. publicly traded company on NASDAQ. In 2021, we acquired Idaho-based Clēnera, a leading greenfield developer of solar and storage projects, to expand our presence in North America. We also recently achieved several commercial operations milestones, including the launch of Project Gecama, the largest wind farm in Spain, and Project Bjorn, one of the largest wind farms in Europe.”
Customer Success Story
Upon asking Yavetz about a customer success story, he replied:
“I’m really excited about Genesis Wind – the largest renewable energy project in Israel with a capacity of 207 MW – which is fast approaching commercial operation. This project serves as a testament to our expertise and perseverance. We successfully secured land agreements with seven major agricultural landowners and navigated a highly complex permitting process involving multiple government agencies, including the Israel Ministry of Energy, the Israel Ministry of Defense, the EA, the local municipality, the Israel Land Authority, and various regulatory bodies.“To connect the project to the grid, we developed and built a large high-voltage underground transmission line—the first of its kind in Israel. This innovative approach allowed us to overcome complex challenges and ensure seamless integration.”
Funding/Revenue
I asked Yavetz about the company’s funding and how Enlight generates revenue, and he revealed:
“We recently had a successful U.S. IPO in February, raising over $280 million as we listed on NASDAQ. This has provided us with strong financial backing and puts us in a well-funded position to execute our plans. When it comes to generating revenues, our primary source is the sale of electricity produced by our projects. We have long-term power purchase agreements in place with investment-grade counterparties. These agreements ensure a steady stream of cash flow for us as we sell electricity at fixed prices, and contracts typically span from 10 to 25 years, providing us with long-term revenue stability. The certainty of this cash flow enables us to access deep pools of capital at an attractive cost, which we can then leverage to accelerate growth.”
Total Addressable Market
What total addressable market (TAM) size is Enlight Renewable Energy pursuing? Yavetz assessed:
“Renewable energy has seen massive growth across the U.S. and Europe. Wood Mackenzie forecasts that the solar market will triple in size over the next five years, amounting to a total installed solar capacity of 378 GW by 2028. Renewable energy also accounted for approximately 30% of global power generation in 2012. That grew to approximately 40% in 2021, a 5% CAGR, and it’s expected to accelerate to approximately 52% of global power generation by 2030, according to BNEF. This indicates significant growth potential for Enlight – and with our focus on developing large-scale projects, we are well positioned to capture a substantial portion of this expanding market.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates Enlight Renewable Energy from its competition? Yavetz told me:
“Our focused development strategy. We prioritize the development of large-scale projects at strategic points of interconnection. One of the biggest challenges in the renewable energy industry is the lack of transmission availability, as the grid is often outdated and ill-suited to handle large amounts of renewable energy. By successfully securing large points of interconnection, we can develop and deliver large-scale projects that others may struggle to achieve. The diversity of our technologies (wind, solar, storage) across markets (Israel, EU, US) also gives us a competitive edge which allows us to capitalize on the broad and rapid growth in the sector without being overly reliant on any one segment.”
Future Company Goals
What are some of Enlight Renewable Energy’s future company goals? Yavetz concluded:
“We have set ambitious goals for the future, focused on executing and expanding our operational capacity. We are currently operating at 1.4 GW and aim to reach 4.5 GW of generation capacity and 3.5 GWh of energy storage by the end of 2025. We’re committed to driving the transition to clean energy and doing our part to make the world a better, greener place.”
