Coworking is a recurring segment where we talk to CFOs and other leaders in the finance space about their experiences, their companies, and the larger economy. Let us know if you are—or you know—a CFO we should interview.
Christopher Smith has been in the sustainability world since his days as a director at Enron. (Yes, that Enron). These days he is the CFO of CleanChoice Energy, a wind and solar project developer and provider of clean energy to the Northeast Atlantic region. When he first started out in sustainability 25 years ago, it was more commonly called the “alternative energy” industry. And today, with Trump’s recent actions against clean energy, those euphemisms might be coming back.
CFO Brew sat down to talk to Smith about how federal cuts are impacting the sector, his plans for a possible recession, and the unique challenges facing a solar CFO.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
How have the cuts that have come to solar and wind from the Trump administration impacted your role as a CFO?
I’ve seen ups and downs through the energy business, so we’ve seen this sort of turbulence.
But long term, we think, and clearly see, clean energy is the long-term winner. And so we plan to stay the course and really stay focused on delivering for our customers and being citizens in the communities where we are.
Are there any unique challenges for being a CFO of a solar energy company?
A lot of the complexity is navigating the capital markets and the right way to finance the business and to grow the business. The reason the capital intensity is so high is because you’re investing in something that’s going to generate benefits for many years. And so to grow the business, you really have to be able to access and foster very good relationships with banks and with capital markets. And when I say banks, typically, I mean commercial banks.
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I would distinguish that from being a public CFO, which I’ve done, which is very much about investor relations and the messaging. And capital is raised in that business in a very different way.
There has been chatter the past couple months about possibly entering a recession. As a CFO, how are you preparing for that possibility with your company?
I think the important thing is capital stewardship as a CFO and really positioning the businesses to be able to handle all kinds of outcomes. You hope for the best, but you plan for the worst. And that’s a tough thing to balance sometimes because it can affect people. The language can affect what they think about their prospects. And it can also be difficult because it may mean you need to be more guarded and more defensive.
But the businesses that survive and thrive are the ones that are able to power through, and not be too much skating close to the edge.
If you weren’t a CFO what would you be?
A farmer.