Convergent Energy and Power, a leading energy storage solutions provider in North America, announced the appointment of Russ Laplante as its new Chief Financial Officer. Russ Laplante succeeds Frank Genova, Convergent’s Co-Founder, who will now transition to the role of Co-Chief Executive Officer, working alongside current CEO and Co-Founder Johannes Rittershausen. Laplante brings extensive experience from his previous role as Chief Investment Officer at Savion, a company specializing in utility-scale solar and energy storage projects.
Laphante said in a statement, “Convergent is a best-in-class energy storage developer, owner, and operator that has been around since the inception of the battery energy storage sector. I look forward to leveraging my experience in the renewable energy sector to help Convergent advance the clean energy transition and maximize the growing demand for energy storage.”
Genova mentioned, “It has been a privilege to serve as Convergent’s CFO for so many important milestones at Convergent and within the broader energy storage industry. With the growth of our business, we are thrilled to add experienced leaders like Russ to our team. I am looking forward to working with him and, together with Johannes, creating solutions for our customers that reduce electricity costs and increase grid reliability.”
Rittershausen stated, “As co-founders, Frank and I have worn many hats, and we have shared leadership responsibilities since the early days of the company. Today, we have grown to more than $1bn of systems in operation or under development, and with the growth of that portfolio, it makes sense to bring on Russ as CFO so that Frank can apply his significant expertise in development and operation to our robust pipeline of projects.”
He further added, “Russ brings a strong track record driving financial excellence and leading strategic initiatives across the renewable energy landscape. As we build and operate energy storage systems to modernize our aging power grid, I have no doubt that Russ’s expertise in financing and managing energy storage and solar will benefit Convergent and the communities where we operate.”
During his decade at Savion, he led mergers and acquisitions, tax equity transactions, project financing, and valuation efforts. Before that, Laplante served as Vice President of Business Development at Tradewind Energy and was a founding member of OwnEnergy, a utility-scale wind development firm where he managed project development, offtake agreements, and construction financing. He began his career as a financial analyst at Goldman Sachs and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation. Reporting directly to Frank Genova, Laplante will be responsible for overseeing corporate development, capital markets, financial planning and analysis, as well as tax and accounting functions at Convergent.
