Daring to do
things differently
We believe renewable energy
needs a long-term partner.
for the energy transition.
Aukera is backed by AtlasInvest, a leading private investor with a focus on the energy sector.
We specialise in renewable investments and development in Europe, from early-stage development and co-development to acquiring ready-to-build projects and constructing the projects ourselves. We have a steadfast commitment to local communities.
The Aukera management team have been working together for over ten years and jointly have decades of experience in developing renewable energy projects around the world. Our team has completed more than one hundred renewable energy investments and co-developments. These include the successful build up and exit of the largest UK feed-in tariff wind business in 2018 and work with the Malaysian state utility company Tenaga Nasional Berhad in a $250m transaction.
As entrepreneurs ourselves we understand our partners, their expectations, and the problems they face. We bring the added value of our years of experience in construction, asset management, investing, and partnering with other companies within the renewable sector.
We pride ourselves on being flexible, transparent and on our ability make decisions rapidly, but in accordance with investment process’ best practices. We build partnerships with developers, landowners and communities and openly communicate with them, keep our promises, and follow the strictest possible corporate governance standards.
We want to see as much energy being derived from renewable sources as possible. We listen to our partner’s needs, respect the local environment, and offer innovative energy solutions.
We have quickly established an international presence with local teams in the UK, Italy, Romania, Germany, and Belgium.
Discover the best method for generating renewable energy where you are and join the energy transition today.
Pascal, Co-Founder
Pascal has been a leading operator and investor in the energy space for more than a decade. His vision is to apply his expertise and build Aukera into a leading European company with a long-term perspective.
Pascal is passionate about environmental sustainability and is actively supporting initiatives to increase a better balance between the people and the planet.
As a Managing Director with The Carlyle Group, he and Catalin built the European renewables team and helped to raise capital for a dedicated investment vehicle. Pascal was previously the CEO of the renewable’s investment arm of AtlasInvest Holding. He holds several non-executive board memberships with large multinational family businesses.
Pascal graduated with a degree from Lancaster University and now lives in Brussels with his wife and two sons.
Catalin, Co-Founder
Catalin has been a focussed entrepreneur and investor in the renewable space for over a decade. He is passionate about building Aukera into a company with a purpose, which will lead to a better future.
He believes in Paul Polman’s definition of “Net Positive” - which means you thrive by giving more to the world than you take and that you can profit by helping fix the world’s problems – rather than by creating them. Or in other words, focus on planet, people and profit.
Along with Pascal, he was a Managing Director with The Carlyle Group, where they built the European renewables team and helped to raise capital for a dedicated investment vehicle. Prior to this partnership, Catalin was the CEO and founder of Bluemerang Capital Limited, a UK-based renewable platform and asset manager which he set up in 2012 and grew organically and through partnerships, building a business worth $240 million.
Catalin began his career in investment banking and holds an MBA degree from INSEAD. He is based in London, is married, and has two daughters.
Cormac, Head of Development
Cormac has led on financing many different types of energy projects, he will bring this expertise to Aukera’s central team to deploy the capital required to make renewable energy projects happen now.
Cormac was previously a Senior Associate at The Carlyle Group working for the Renewable and Sustainable Energy fund. Prior to this, he was Head of UK Development at Livos Energy, an onshore renewable energy company and Associate at both Longspur Capital and Bluemerang Capital.
Cormac graduated in Finance and Economics from University College Cork, is based in London, is married and has one son and a dog.
Simon, Head of Investments
Simon has over 20 years’ M&A and private equity experience in London and Edinburgh including a 7-year period during which he founded and managed a renewable energy M&A advisory business. After spending the first 8 years of his career as a generalist, his passion for the environment led him to specialise in renewable energy in 2007.
Prior to joining Aukera, Simon was the Chief Investment Officer at Red Rock Power, an Edinburgh-based onshore and offshore wind developer. He previously worked with Pascal, Catalin and Cormac at The Carlyle Group and Longspur Capital.
Simon holds a masters degree in Physics from the University of Oxford and currently lives in Edinburgh with his wife and two sons.
Yuri, Chief Financial Officer
Radu, Managing Director Romania
Javier, Senior Asset Manager
David, Senior Technical Manager
Samira, Associate Director
Margherita, M&A Associate and Project Manager
Ioana, Office Manager
Richard, Development Director
Phil, Development Director
Octavian, Head of Business Development Romania
Alex, Project Manager
Andrei, Project Manager
Graham, Project Manager
Jack, Investment Associate
Masa, Financial Controller
Riaz, Investment Associate
Marcel Q.H. van Poecke
Marcel van Poecke has more than 25 years of experience in the Energy sector. He is the Chairman of AtlasInvest, a private holding company he founded in 2007. AtlasInvest is engaged in investments across the broad energy spectrum.
Marcel van Poecke is Vice-Chairman of Carlyle International Energy Partners (CIEP). CIEP focuses on the energy sector outside North America with a particular focus on oil and gas: upstream, midstream, downstream and oil field services.
Marcel is also the Chairman of ONE-DYAS, an AtlasInvest portfolio company with oil and gas assets in the North Sea and West Africa. Marcel has a degree in Agricultural Business Administration from the University of Wageningen and a Masters in Business Administration from the William E. Simon School of Management of the University of Rochester, USA.
Julian Metherell
Julian Metherell is a founding partner of MW&L Capital Partners, a private investment and financial advisory firm. Formerly a Partner at Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., where he served as Chief Executive Officer of the UK investment banking division, he is currently vice-Chairman of GasLog Ltd, a global LNG shipping business and has also served on the Board of Euronav, the NYSE and Belgium listed tanker company.
From 2011 to 2015, Mr. Metherell was the Chief Financial Officer and a Director of Genel Energy plc, a leading independent oil and gas exploration and production company operating in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Genel Energy plc was the successor to Vallares Plc, a publicly listed Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) which Mr. Metherell co-founded in April 2011.
Julian is also a Trustee of the Royal Opera House and Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Judge Business School, Cambridge University.
Heleen van Poecke
Heleen van Poecke is an Investment Manager at AtlasInvest, a private investment holding company focused on the energy sector and the CEO of KEY ESG, a Software-as-a-Service company focused on enabling companies to manage their ESG performance.
Heleen has over ten years of work experience in finance and investing (Greenhill & Co., AlpInvest, AtlasInvest) and software sales (Collibra).
Heleen holds a BSc and an MSc in Economics from Erasmus University in the Netherlands where she graduated cum laude for her Masters thesis on the European Emission Trading Scheme. She also holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Didier Ryelandt
Didier Ryelandt is the CFO of AtlasInvest. Previously he held various Finance positions in Belgium and the United States for ING (Investment Banking – Brussels), Engie (VP Finance – Houston, Tx) and Exmar (CFO – Belgium and Executive VP Offshore – Houston, TX).
Didier holds a Masters Degree in Business Engineering from the Louvain School of Management.
Are you collaborative,
inventive and daring?
We are actively looking for professionals that share our passion for a career in building a sustainable future. Get in contact today to find out more about joining our growing team.
and fairer future
Aukera is a renewable energy company focused on leading the global transition to clean energy across Europe. We are dedicated to making a positive contribution through the creation of long-term value for all our stakeholders on a socially and environmentally sustainable basis.
The cost of installing solar, wind and energy storage equipment is dropping significantly, while the future of fossil fuel power is becoming more costly and less certain as emissions accelerate climate change.
Governments are encouraging the electrification of many industries, from transport to heating, demand for renewable energy to power this transition is growing year by year, country by country. It’s now time to act. Generating electricity from renewable sources can massively improve your margins whether you are selling-on the electricity generated, or using it yourself.
As a company, we engage local stakeholders and environmental groups in the planning and operational stages of all our projects. We adhere to all best practice guidelines, respecting the natural environment around us locally as well as helping to combat climate change globally.
Find out how your organisation or community can accelerate the transition to a renewable powered future.