Projects

Virunga Energies is a vertically integrated power utility serving North Kivu, DRC. NEOS was retained to perform a utility diagnostic, assess the network conditions, and benchmark the service levels to modern utility standards. As a result of the diagnostic, a detailed performance improvement plan and an investment plan were designed to help Virunga Energies modernize its operations.

Montenegro is connected electrically to Italy via an undersea cable, and there is a plan for a second cable. Both governments of Italy and Montenegro wanted to integrate their competitive electricity markets through a dynamic known as market coupling (simultaneous integration of markets across two or more bidding zones). To support Montenegro Power Exchange (MEPX) in this process, a gap assessment was prepared to identify all areas that needed rectification for MEPX to comply with EU requirements for market coupling. This assessment identified 14 gaps, or weaknesses, and provided guidance on how to rectify such gaps to allow for market coupling to proceed.

Consistent with the EU target market model, KESH, a state-owned power corporation, was encountering new competitive liberalized markets for wholesale power trading. To support KESH, a new electricity trading strategy was developed that included reorganization, segmentation of responsibilities for trading (back, mid and front office operations), asset portfolio optimization to determine when best to sell or buy, and enhanced risk management to take into account the risks associated with electricity trading. Additionally, KESH trading staff received significant trading on the principles of the day-ahead market, and various types of bidding approaches to maximize trading success.

NEOS was engaged in a diagnostic review of key areas, including strategy and performance monitoring, long-term planning, integration of distributed energy resources, cyber security, and smart grid. The review identified areas for improvement, and detailed implementation plans were developed. Subsequently, NEOS helped implement the key recommendations.

NEOS conducted an LCA study for an aluminum casting company in the UAE. The study covered the entire production lifecycle, including material sourcing, casting and fabrication processes, energy use, emissions, and waste management. It aimed to identify opportunities for reducing environmental impact and improving resource efficiency.

The electricity regulator engaged NEOS to undertake a detailed power distribution and supply companies audit. Our scope of work included undertaking a thorough analysis of their existing practices and validating the commercial performance, including the loss levels, being reported by these utilities. Our team also formalized an audit methodology so that the Regulator could continue its work with a common approach in the future.

NEOS was retained to strengthen the procurement function of Kosovo Energy Corporation. Our work included the review of the entire procurement cycle, from initiating the requests to payments. The diagnostic of the current situation identified improvement recommendations for the company's organizational structure, systems, policies, and processes. A detailed IT infrastructure assessment was also conducted to verify the company's readiness for supporting all systems (current and new) used within procurement and a set of upgrades were recommended.

Under contract to RTI International and USAID, NEOS helped to improve the capacity of S.A. Energocom, a state-owned enterprise historically serving as the single wholesale buyer for electricity, to develop its trading functions further and improve the security of supply and support diversification away from Russian sources of energy. NEOS supported Energocom in the prequalification and tendering process, ensuring EFET agreements were in place and providing capacity building to strengthen Energocom's trading function. This effort was also targeted at supporting Energocom to take the required steps to secure a 300M Euro line of financing to support emergency fuel procurement from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Our team also revised the strategic plan for Energocom, designed a new organizational structure, developed a set of policies and processes, and conducted staff training.

Before the 2022 conflict in Ukraine, our team developed a strategy for addressing energy security requirements in the east of Ukraine, along the line of contact. Various strategic objectives were proposed, including targets, and a set of projects/initiatives to implement the strategy were defined. Two cases were undertaken as part of this strategy: one involving assessing water supply and conveyances, and the other supporting electricity distribution system operator field operations. Unfortunately, further efforts were put on hold following the Russian invasion in February 2022.

Our team was hired to develop a detailed energy sector strategy for a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) country. The focus was on best positioning the client organization to contribute to the sector strategy. The engagement included the detailed strategy assessment of a large national state-owned company. Prior strategies were reviewed, and a new plan was prepared for securing the corporation's operations, considering possible changes in industry structure, governance, and regulation. Detailed modeling was performed using various scenarios around sector development to understand the implications for the client's organization.

Under contract to RTI International and USAID, NEOS supported the operationalization of the ALPEX, the Albanian and Kosovo Power Exchange. This effort involved helping ALPEX and its service provider to complete a wide range of agreements, rules for trading, settlement and clearing, launch the day-ahead and intraday electricity markets, and couple Albania with Kosovo. NEOS is also supporting the possible market coupling between at least one Western Balkans (non-EU) nation with an EU member, the first time this will have occurred.

NEOS team members supported the detailed design of a Smart Grid program for a UAE utility, including transmission substation automation, asset management, distribution network automation, cyber security, smart metering for electricity and water, ICT, and system integration. Additionally, the team members advised on a strategy for promoting electric vehicle adoption, including the location and type of public charging stations and the business model for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

NEOS, under contract to Tetra Tech ES Inc. and USAID, contributed to developing a modernization plan for the North Macedonian power producer ESM. ESM is the dominant power producer in North Macedonia, representing about 85% of the power produced in the country. Our team supported the modernization planning for corporate and electricity assets (thermal, mining, and hydropower). It included a comprehensive analysis of the assets' existing corporate structure, processes, human resources, technical status, and a transition plan for ceasing extracting activities at several mines aiming for final decommissioning. Our team also developed a list of initiatives designed to help ESM improve its position in the North Macedonian market and ensure its financial sustainability for the future, especially considering the challenges of decarbonization.

In collaboration with a state university, Neos led a research and development project to reduce the electricity consumption in the electrochemical process of hydrogen production and develop a highly efficient fuel cell. A range of new electrocatalysts was successfully tested with a 7% reduction in electricity requirement for hydrogen production, and a new hydrogen-oxygen fuel cell was designed. Further research and development of the products are underway.

Under contract to RTI International and USAID, NEOS undertook a detailed review of crisis preparedness in the Western Balkans to determine how well positioned they are for the upcoming winter season, given security of supply considerations. For several countries, additional support was provided for crisis planning and crisis management in line with the EU regulations 2019/941 for risk preparedness in electricity and 2017/1938 for the gas sector.

NEOS supported the update of preventative and emergency plans for the electricity and natural gas sectors under EU regulation 2017/1938. This included providing support to ensure that the plans would be operationally oriented and able to withstand security of supply challenges due to the conflict in neighboring Ukraine.

NEOS was retained to design a code of conduct covering the full meter-to-cash practices of the power distribution and supply licensees and a loss calculation and reporting framework. The code of conduct covered the mandated provisions and recommended practices for the meter reading, billing, and collections cycles and introduced clarity around calculating and reporting the losses to the regulator.

NEOS was retained to deploy full-time utility performance turnaround managers to assist a power distributor with reducing stubbornly high losses, increasing collections, implementing revenue protection and control mechanisms, and reorganizing the structure of the service delivery units.

NEOS team members advised the Superintendencia de Servicios Públicos Domiciliarios (SSPD) on the performance of the Electricaribe utility, one of the largest electric utilities in Colombia, with over 2 million customers. The SSPD had raised concerns about the company's performance and liquidity. NEOS team members reviewed the status of the company's performance and provided recommendations to the SSPD on how to address it. Following a government decision to take the company under administration, we advised on a loss reduction program for the company, including strengthening internal controls. Additionally, we examined the company's assets, including limited field inspection, to verify the accuracy of the asset records used within the organization.

Our team was engaged by a utility in Oman - responsible for the portable water supply in the Sultanate - to define its business strategy over the next five years. It included defining the strategic initiatives for all functions, establishing a new organizational structure, designing appropriate business processes, systems, and performance management frameworks, and planning their workforce's migration and training. At the same time, our team also established a strategic PMO outlining all its processes, tools, and templates. After six months, it transferred all the functions to the dedicated utility team.

The NEOS team was tasked with developing a five-year strategic plan for a specific utility in Kenya. We started by reviewing the company's strategic intent (i.e., vision, mission, values, etc.) and the overall power sector in the country. Subsequently, we formulated a strategic plan and balanced scorecards, cascading down to the respective divisions and departments. We also devised a detailed implementation plan outlining various initiatives to be deployed and a business case to justify the benefits and returns of such initiatives.

NEOS was retained to improve the operational performance of PNG Power Limited. Our team reduced losses and improved the commercial performance of Papua New Guinea Power Utility. Our task included setting up revenue protection and control functions, working to reduce losses, increasing revenue, inspecting meter bypasses, and rectifying connections, identifying unregistered customers, developing meter-to-cash processes and motivation frameworks, undertaking customer enumeration, and helping to integrate the billing and vending systems.

Our team was retained to undertake a detailed diagnostic of the performance of a district heating utility serving a population of 1M residents. Our work included technical, operational, and commercial assessments and recommending a roadmap for performance improvement and modernization.

Our team was retained to assist with the technical and economic feasibility study of a 10MW HPP project. We supported the technical review of the site conditions and the preliminary design, preparing a financial model and the environmental impact assessment.

Our team was retained as the transaction advisor to successfully privatize an electricity distribution utility in Georgia valued at $147 million to an EU investor. We supported all elements of the transaction, including advising on the structure of the transaction and complications/risks associated with it, preparing the solicitation, roadshows, reviewing bids received, drafting all legal agreements, assisting the government with its Conditions Precedent, qualifying the company for privatization (e.g., ensuring the asset and land ownership records were up to date, addressing employee considerations, dealing with creditor concerns, residual liabilities) and participating in negotiations throughout.

As part of the power sector privatization in Nigeria, our team was engaged by interested investors to perform a detailed appraisal of the various target assets and to prepare the relevant business proposals, investment plans and financial models. We also assisted in the negotiation process with the government until all deals were successfully closed.

The UAE government plans to establish a refuse-derived fuel facility in the Emirate of Umm Al Quwain to increase the waste diversion rate from landfills. The Ministry subsequently hired our team to assist in developing and implementing an overall PPP project, which included conducting technical and financial feasibility studies, developing appropriate project KPIs, preparing tender documents, engaging in contract negotiations, and awarding the contract. Our team eventually managed to close the deal for a $30M facility, which would treat 1,000 tons of waste per day and produce 800 tons of refuse-derived fuel per day.

A European investment fund retained NEOS to help bring a water treatment and supply project serving 800,000+ residents to a financial close. The project scope included assessing the condition of and completing the design for existing groundwater supply wells, a 68,000 m3/d water treatment plant, and the finished water pumping and distribution system. In addition, an environmental and social impact assessment was completed to prepare the utility organization to implement the project's commercial objective of providing potable water to the residents. 

Businesses operate daily in the face of disruptive events. The recent global pandemic has clearly demonstrated this. Before the war's onset, NEOS team members supported implementing ISO 22301 Business Continuity policies and processes within the Ministry of Energy, Ukraine.

NEOS was retained to support an electric utility for developing a realizable ICT/Resilience strategy that would consider their current state and their available budget. A current state assessment drove the determination of the ICT/Resilience Strategy with the promise of improving the ICT systems' functionality, performance, and reliability.

Cybersecurity is always a challenge because it deals with an ever-changing environment. The challenge faced by management and regulators is the question of effectiveness and affordability in protecting IT and OT systems. To help address this challenge, we were commissioned by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) to develop the document, 'Understanding Cybersecurity Maturity Models within the Context of Energy Regulation,' along with a supporting training package delivered to regulators in the Black Sea Region.

Operational Technology presents unique challenges to cybersecurity compared to IT, and when OT and IT become interconnected, it raises even more challenges. Through the application of best practice cybersecurity principles established by NIST and ISO, a comprehensive cybersecurity solution has delivered.

NEOS was asked for guidance in evaluating cybersecurity investments made by utilities in Georgia in their efforts to protect the power grid from cyber-attacks. It included the implementation of ISO 27001 and in the performance of cyber risk assessments, thus ensuring prudent investment in cybersecurity protection measures.

NEOS was engaged in providing cybersecurity best practice guidance to support regulators in the following areas: performing assessments of utility preparedness and ensuring cybersecurity preparedness. NEOS expertise will help protect critical infrastructure and commercial and residential customers from power grid disruptions due to cyberattacks.

In support of the cybersecurity provisions of the national-level Energy Law, NEOS was asked to provide guidance with regulator-level cybersecurity strategy and established regulatory bylaws for the energy sector. The resulting strategy and bylaws were developed and delivered, thus ensuring the protection of the power grid and critical infrastructure.

Day-to-day business has come to rely extensively on IT services to the point that the quality and completeness of service delivery by the IT environment can significantly influence the operations and revenues of an organization. By mapping out critical business services and assessing the IT service delivery performance, gaps and improvements were identified that, when resolved, served to improve on operations and revenue.

ICT systems within many organizations are viewed as a technical capability to make tasks easier to perform. However, the business's day-to-day operations significantly improve when viewed from an ICT strategy aligned with a corporate strategy. Working with our customers, we identified critical gaps in the ICT systems and the business processes that relied on the ICT systems, which resulted in increased productivity and increased access to the utility's bill payment system, thus improving revenues and customer satisfaction.

A waste management service provider was exploring the possibility of developing a waste-to-energy power plant that would convert over 2,000 tons of municipal waste to electricity, which would subsequently be sold to the primary electric utility providers. Our team undertook a detailed feasibility study for this project, involving the areas of technology assessment, financial analysis, and operating model evaluation.

A multinational solar panel manufacturer was exploring the possibility of entering UAE's rooftop solar market. Our team was hired to undertake a detailed feasibility study to assess the overall market size, identify potential off-takers, analyze the competitive landscape, and prepare a business model with the necessary financial forecasts. As a result, our team delivered a comprehensive investment plan valued at $300M to be implemented over the next five years.

A leading utility in Turkey was considering introducing battery storage and smart meters as part of its existing network. Our team was hired to conduct a feasibility study for both initiatives, review the legal and regulatory frameworks, conduct a comprehensive risk analysis, and develop an appropriate implementation plan. We eventually devised an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) trial project involving 12,000 sophisticated smart meters with two-way communication.

In collaboration with a European university and a major energy company in the Netherlands, our team prepared a business case and designed a circular ecosystem for the recycling, reuse, and redeployment of solar energy assets. The work included studying the market, examining the logistics, identifying the stakeholders, designing a governance model, preparing a cost-benefit analysis, and developing funding mechanisms and the implementation plan.

NEOS was retained by an international organization to assess the commitments and the progress of nine East European countries in meeting their decarbonization goals. NEOS developed an analytical framework and a set of interactive dashboards showcasing the steps taken by the governments of these countries and the level of decarbonization in the electricity production, transportation, industrial and residential sectors.

NEOS was retained to undertake an in-depth analysis of the energy sectors in two European countries, study all players across the value chain and identify vulnerabilities against malign influence by foreign powers in limiting or otherwise posing risk to the energy independence of these countries. Our work included developing a comprehensive analytical framework, critically evaluating the situation, showcasing the results, and recommending strategies to counter such influence.

NEOS conducted a Life-Cycle Assessment of paper and glass packaging products for a global producer of beverages. The work included an inventory analysis, preparing inputs for specialized software, analyzing the outputs, and determining the environmental impact. The assessment and the reporting were conducted in compliance with an ISO14040 standard, and recommendations were provided to the enterprise management on mitigating the negative impact areas highlighted by the study. 

NEOS was retained to assess the ESG performance of a manufacturing company in the Middle East and provide an impact analysis across various pillars of sustainability. A set of recommendations were elaborated as a result of the assessment and an implementation roadmap was designed to enhance the ESG factor.

As part of modernizing and decarbonizing the energy sector in the country, our team was retained to evaluate the impact of closing down several coal mines used for lignite-fired power production. Our team recommended a just transition project and a plan to convert the site for solar energy production and retrain and transition the affected personnel onto new opportunities.

Tunisia’s electricity and gas company, STEG, was preparing for unbundling. EBRD requested to undertake a re-valuation of its assets in preparation for the transition to IFRS & establishing Regulated Asset Base requirements. The re-evaluation would also secure a 10M credit facility from the EBRD. NEOS undertook the review of the methodology for determining regulated tariffs and other regulatory documents, benchmarking of different assets valuations methodologies, identification and analysis of the components of the assets register, built up the asset database, and conducted the re-evaluation of the assets by energy (power and gas) and by business units (generation, transmission, and distribution).

Our client was a state-owned utility running at high losses and low collections. The government did not know the real challenges in the utility and needed external support addressing these issues. Our team was engaged under a management contract to undertake a rapid performance turnaround of the utility. The team analyzed the utility, identified root causes of mismanagement, designed and implemented a radical performance turnaround agenda. The company was restructured in under four years, new business processes and control mechanisms were introduced, billing and customer information systems were revamped, and human resources were retrained and redeployed. A dedicated revenue protection unit was established, over 120,000 unregistered customers were identified and registered, and over 1500 cases of fraud or other illicit transactions were investigated and prosecuted. The loss levels were reduced to industry standards, and the collections reached almost 100%. The utility was privatized.