Mott MacDonald has appointed Claudio Pierini to lead its transmission and distribution power business in sub-Saharan Africa. Claudio will be responsible for bolstering the consultancy’s relationships with existing clients, driving business development and expanding the size and capabilities of the company’s oil and gas, power transmission and generation teams in the region.
Claudio is a senior power systems engineer with over 28 years’ experience in electrical engineering. He joins Mott MacDonald from Aurecon, where he was technical director responsible for growing the company’s presence in Africa. Claudio’s career to date has seen him leading projects throughout South Africa, as well as in Ethiopia, Nigeria, Mozambique and Angola. He has worked with major clients including Eskom, Sasol, Siemens and ArcelorMittal to establish, upgrade and maintain substations of varying sizes, helping to support expansion plans by increasing networks’ load growth. Claudio was principal engineer on the upgrade of the substation supplying power to Sandton’s central business district, one of Johannesburg’s primary business centres, as well as lead design engineer for two substations and sub-transmission networks for Johannesburg’s City Power.
Commenting on his appointment, Claudio said: “Mott MacDonald is well known in the industry for delivering successful projects worldwide. The company’s reputation amongst major clients in Africa, particularly those who procure independent power projects in South Africa, was a key reason that I was keen to join. I believe our presence in Africa can play a major role in changing people’s lives for the better, as our positive relationships with international funding agencies are a vital asset in delivering successful power projects and infrastructure in the region.”
Jason Rowan, general manager of Mott MacDonald’s energy transmission and oil and gas business, added: “Claudio’s experience of the technical and commercial intricacies that get transformative power projects off the ground will prove vital as we expand our business in sub-Saharan Africa. His expertise in all stages of the design and development of safe, reliable and sustainable power systems in the region will provide a steer to drive projects and build relationships with clients that can help to realise the continent’s great power generation potential.”
Mott MacDonald operates from 28 offices across Africa, with power specialists active in a diverse range of renewable energy schemes as well as on projects in the coal, oil and gas and transmission and distribution sectors. The consultancy has played a key role in some of sub-Saharan Africa’s most significant power projects, including Lake Turkana, the continent’s largest wind farm to date in Kenya, as well as South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme.