Bart White

Bart runs Santander's Energy financing and financing advisory activity. The team of over 85 professionals is primarily focused on financing and financing advisory of Renewable Energy generation where Santander had a leading presence (#1 globally 2025 YTD) but also Hydrogen, CCS, BESS, Biogas, EfW, Smart Meters and other tangential subsectors. Prior to his current role, Bart ran Santander's Euoprean Energy business, Santander’s UK and Nordics structured finance business, and Santander's European structured finance advisory practise. Bart previously worked at UBS leading their Utilities and Infrastructure Finance business, and RBS. Bart holds an MA in Physics from the University of Oxford.

Session Overview

Wednesday, 5 November

13:45

Decarbonisation Conference Room A 13:45 - 14:25

Exploring the role of battery storage in electrifying emerging economies

By addressing challenges such as unreliable grids and renewable energy intermittency, battery storage will prove critical in electrifying emerging economies and empowering communities to prosper. Recent developments, including large-scale investments in South Africa and India, demonstrate how battery energy storage systems (BESSs) enhance grid stability and improve energy access. By enabling the storage of excess energy generated from renewables, battery storage systems can provide power during periods of high demand or low sunlight, increasing energy access and reliability in emerging economies. Through policy support, effective knowledge sharing and innovative financing solutions for BESSs, the global energy sector has an opportunity to ensure sustainable access and long-term economic growth. It is therefore essential to identify how strategic investments and public-private partnerships can be leveraged to secure supply chains and infrastructure that enable continued advancements in battery storage.

Attendee insights:

Learn how stakeholders are scaling battery storage to improve electrification and renewable integration in emerging economies while navigating supply chain, financing and infrastructure-related challenges.