EL DORADO HILLS, Calif. — September 9, 2024 – Avantus, a premier U.S. developer of utility-scale solar and solar-plus-storage projects, today announced that Cliff Graham has been appointed as the company’s Chief Executive Officer, effective today.

Graham brings more than 15 years of executive leadership in clean energy development across the United States, with a track record of building, maturing and executing renewable portfolios from the ground up. Throughout his career, Graham has gained significant expertise through his hands-on approach to every step of project development, from early-stage land acquisition and permitting to power marketing, late-stage financing, construction and more.

At Avantus, Graham will work to strengthen and expand the company’s substantial presence in key markets across the Western U.S. and advance its development portfolio, which spans more than 30 gigawatts (GWdc) of solar and 94 GW hours (GWh) of energy storage.

“With its pipeline, experience and forward-thinking team, Avantus is remarkably well positioned to make a tangible impact in supporting the energy transition,” said Graham. “Avantus is known for developing record-breaking clean energy projects, and I’m thrilled and honored to join this established leader in developing one of the nation’s largest portfolios of solar and energy storage. I look forward to building on the team’s success and accelerating the company’s world-class clean energy projects as we begin a new chapter in partnership with KKR and EIG.”

“Cliff has strong leadership acumen forged from his many years serving in the military and honed during his tenure as a senior leader with renewable energy companies. He has continuously demonstrated the ability to deliver results and has deep expertise in the renewables sector, which make him a great fit to take the helm at Avantus. We are thrilled to have him join the team and steer the company in this new phase of growth,” said Cecilio Velasco, Managing Director, KKR.

Graham’s appointment follows KKR’s majority equity investment and arrangement of a new development facility to accelerate the deployment of Avantus’ pipeline. Together, KKR and EIG are the sole equity investors in Avantus.

"We are excited to see Cliff step into the role of CEO at Avantus," said Andrew Ellenbogen, Co-President and Global Co-Head of Energy Transition at EIG. "His unique blend of strategic insight and operational experience, particularly in the renewable energy space, makes him the perfect choice to lead Avantus into its next chapter. Cliff’s vision and drive for innovation will be instrumental as Avantus continues to scale and create value in the evolving energy landscape."

Graham joins Avantus from 174 Power Global, where he served as Chief Development Officer, leading the permitting, power marketing, financing and construction of a 3 GW solar and energy storage project, one of the largest in the nation.

Previously, as Senior Vice President of Development at EDF Renewables, Graham led the company’s U.S. development efforts, managing a 150-person team focused on solar, wind, storage, green hydrogen and transmission. He was responsible for establishing the company’s U.S. solar business, propelling the company from 25th to 8th in national solar capacity. Prior to this, Graham led greenfield wind development for NextEra Energy, where he helped grow NextEra’s clean energy pipeline three-fold, and eventually helped take NextEra Partners public on the New York Stock Exchange.

Graham served 10 years in the United States Air Force as a pilot, rising to the rank of Major. He was part of the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command, one of the most elite military organizations.