Solarplaza Summit | Asset Management Japan

Takuji Okubo is one of Japan's leading business economists. Takuji is Managing Director at Japan Macro Advisors, a boutique consultancy he founded in 2012. He is also the CFO at Zen Place Inc., the largest operator of Pilates Studio in Japan with 110 studios in Japan. After graduating from Tokyo University where he received a prestigious Inoue Scholarship, Takuji began his career in 1997 as an Economist at Goldman Sachs Securities in Tokyo, Japan. After being promoted to a rank of Senior Economist in 2000, he left Goldman Sachs in 2003 to pursue his graduate degrees that include an MBA from INSEAD (France), as well as an MSc in Economics from UPF (Barcelona). He spent two additional years at UPF as a PhD candidate in Finance. While at UPF, he taught graduate level courses in Financial Economics and Investment Theory. He returned to the financial industry in 2007 via Merrill Lynch Japan where he worked as a Senior Economist/Senior Director, until he joined Societe Generale (SG) as a Chief Economist in 2010. He is a frequent contributor to the financial press, business journals, and television media, including Bloomberg and Reuters. He serves as Executive Committee member of British Chamber of Commerce in Japan and as Director for Japan Risk Forum, an association of Chief Risk Officers and sits on the board of Inoue Scholarship Foundation. He teaches Finance for 3 weeks every year at Harbor Space University, a University in Barcelona.

Andrew Hughes, Of Counsel in the Tokyo office, focuses his practice on representing international equity investors and developers in the acquisition, financing and development, and disposition of solar and wind energy projects; advising renewable energy operators and energy purchasers on corporate PPAs; and representing Japanese investors in investments in overseas renewable energy projects. Andrew also has significant experience advising on sophisticated real estate and asset finance transactions involving global opportunity funds, banks and other financial institutions. Prior to joining Orrick’s Energy and Infrastructure Group, Andrew was an in-house counsel at GREE Inc. and Electronic Arts where he gained experience in various corporate and commercial transactions, including joint ventures, cross border M&A and general corporate matters.

Izumi Kaizuka - 調査事業部 部長 - Ms Izumi Kaizuka is the manager of Research Division in RTS Corporation, a PV consulting company with more than 30 years history based in Tokyo. She has been Japan’s representative of Task 1, IEA PVPS since 2003 and one of the authors of IEA PVPS Trends Report. She has been conducting various research projects as a PV market and industry analyst for METI and other government organizations, research institutes and PV companies in Japan and overseas. She also regularly writes articles on PV market for professional magazines.

Mr. Mezaki graduated from the Keio University. He holds an M.A. in Social Anthropology, from the University of London (LSE). He worked as a derivatives trader at Merrill Lynch in Tokyo, New York, and London. After leaving Merrill Lynch, he embarked on a nearly 10-year journey to more than 100 countries around the world. With a view to developing sustainable energy business, he started GPSS Holdings, Inc. He is also involved in educational activities to promote natural energy through various media.

Masayuki Sakai is the founder and CEO of CO2O, which is the independent O&M and asset management solution company in Japanese PV market. CO2O is also a technical due diligence company and already has inspected more than 5 GW in Japanese solar power plants. Prior to founding CO2O, he was also an entrepreneur in Japan to set up an entertainment marketing company, DVD verification, and call center business for Hollywood movie companies and major Japanese record companies. Graduated from Waseda University in 1998, GLOBIS University MBA in 2011.

Mr. Martin Stein graduated from Durham University and Cambridge University. After working in acquisition finance for ING Bank in London, he joined Shinsei Bank’s acquisition finance team in Tokyo in 2007. Following the introduction of the FIT program 5 years ago, he worked extensively for Shinsei Bank on energy project finance in Japan. Since 2017 he has been with Amp, a global clean energy developer and investor, based in Tokyo, working on acquisitions and development of clean energy assets in Japan.