Michael Lesser Email & Phone Number

Cambridge, Ma, Usa

Works on promoting small-scale provision of infrastructure services – energy, water, sanitation, communications, transport – for poverty alleviation in developing countries via implementation of the Social Merchant Bank Approach that provides financial, business development and technical assistance to local enterprises. As economist, provides financial and technical training to local non-profit staff in India and assists in evaluating local infrastructure enterprises and investments. Ongoing work focuses on early-stage impact investing in India, financing small and medium enterprises that provide livelihood improvement and increased employment for low-income workers and address environmental sustainability.

Cambridge, Ma, Usa

Energy sector planning in developing countries - supply and demand anaylsis covering electricity (national and rural), oil, natural gas, renewable energy, traditional fuels, demand forecasting, efficiency/conservation. Project feasibility, pricing/tariffs studies, national planning, policy developing. Work in Asia, Africa and Latin America with field work in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Philippines, Ethiopia, and Malawi. Managed projects for World Bank, USAID and Asian Development Bank.

Cambridge, Ma, Usa

Economic and energy analyses including energy pricing, investment evaluation, demand forecasting and computer modeling. Projects included Philippines petroleum pricing study, Honduras energy sector review, Philippines USAID energy program review, and methodology for energy supply-demand balances for World Bank.

Colombia

As part of the National Energy Study, Government of Colombia, in-country resident adviser - analyzed energy use in the agricultural sector and the potential for alternative energy technologies.

Sacramento, Ca, Usa

Financial and technical evaluations of energy supply projects: fuel ethanol plants in California, lumber mill co-generation plants in California for private clients, biomass power plants in Belize for the U.N., and review of commercial wood gasifiers in North America for SERI.

Cambridge, Ma, Usa

- Energy planning in developing countries: assessment of conventional and non conventional energy supply technologies and traditional fuel resource assessments, industrial energy demand analysis, demand (both fuels and electricity) forecasting and management, electric power sector expansion analysis, sector investment analysis. Selected project work: energy sector planning for Bangladesh covering power system expansion, natural gas transmission, and oil refinery expansion as well as sectoral energy demand forecasting; preparation of USAID project paper on a renewable/non conventional energy program for Thailand; and rural energy and traditional fuel use assessment for a number of countries including: Thailand, Bangladesh, and Peru.- Worked on US Environmental Protection Agency studies estimating the financial impact of water pollution regulations, with particular focus on the petrochemicals industry.