Art of Project Finance with Chris Negus and Andrew Rice

This week on RNG Girls, Lisa Kitt and Skye Austin are joined by Chris Negus and Andrew Rice for a practical conversation on one of the RNG industry’s most important, and often least understood areas: project finance. Chris Negus is Managing Partner & Chief Executive Officer, with more than 10 years’ experience across banking, commercial lending, business development, M&A and biogas project finance. He has helped facilitate over £160m of debt and led ten M&A transactions worth £400m. Andrew Rice is Managing Partner & Chief Operating Officer, with more than 30 years’ experience in retail and commercial finance, including leadership roles at HSBC, NatWest, Citibank and BMW. He has refinanced over £175m and brings extensive relationship management and restructuring expertise. Together, they explain what makes an RNG project investable — and why even the strongest technical project cannot produce a molecule without funding. The conversation covers: 🔹 How project finance differs from corporate finance 🔹 Why lenders assess the team as closely as the project 🔹 The importance of feedstock security, offtake, contracts, operators, counterparties and sponsor experience 🔹 Why trust, transparency and relationships matter as much as spreadsheets 🔹 Why technically strong projects can still be unfinanceable 🔹 How weak assumptions are exposed in difficult markets 🔹 How developers should approach optionality, molecule value, SAF, marine fuel, bioCO2, carbon capture and future pathways This episode is for developers, operators, investors, lenders, farmers, technology providers and anyone interested in how RNG projects move from concept to infrastructure. Before the steel, concrete, compressors, membranes or pipelines arrive, someone must believe in the project enough to fund it. Chapters: 00:53 Introduction to RNG and Project Financing 06:01 Trust, Leadership and Building Lender Confidence 08:40 What Makes an RNG Project Fundable 14:12 Managing Risk in a Selective Lending Market 20:05 Common Project Finance Pitfalls 27:54 Project Design, CO₂ Capture and Value Maximization 43:46 Emerging Markets and Flexible Development Models 01:03:35 Capital Stacks, Market Shifts and the Lightning Round Host: Lisa Kitt Founder, RNG Girls | Managing Director, Dahlia Recruitment LinkedIn:   / lisa-kitt-0ab28521   Co-host: Skye Austin Sales Director (RNG & Compression), Stark Tech | Co-Vice Chair of the American Biogas Council LinkedIn:   / skye-austin-506b1075   Guest: Chris Negus Managing Partner & CEO, Global NRG Advisory LinkedIn:   / chris-negus-global-nrg   Guest: Andrew Rice Managing Partner & COO, Global NRG Advisory LinkedIn:   / andrew-rice-246b53144   Learn more about Global NRG Advisory here: https://globalnrgadvisory.co.uk/ RNG Girls is a podcast on the people, projects and politics of Renewable Natural Gas. 🔔 Subscribe for more conversations from across the RNG industry.