ABOUT BEC
Working With Bia Energy Capital
BEC is focused on delivering reliable and cost-effective energy and capacity, developing and acquiring successful projects, and accelerating the transition to clean energy. We work with our partners to achieve these goals, including the facility owner/operators, power purchasers, the local utility, our investors, and the community. A project is only successful when all of our project partners are successful. We strive for long-term relationships with our partners in order to successfully complete and manage multiple projects and investments. Our success is built on our reputation.
Keeping Development Simple
BEC builds projects that deliver reliable, cost-effective energy and capacity — or we won’t build the system. Development is not a cookie-cutter process but too many developers and their investors make it more complicated than it needs to be.
Forcing a project to meet predetermined, one-size-fits-all criteria results in all parties wasting time and money trying to wedge the square peg into a round hole. Based on our decades of experience in the energy development industry, we are astute enough to not waste time on immaterial, non-value-additive issues and instead are creative at addressing and solving the important material issues, without burdening our partners.
Working With Property Owners and Power Purchasers
We work with property owners/power purchasers (a host) to understand their concerns and address potential issues, such as pricing, the environmental value of a project, a project’s schedule, the impact of construction on a host’s operations and facilities, visual impacts, and ongoing operations. We work hard to minimize the impact on — and maximize the value to — the host related to the documentation, development, construction, financing, and operation of a project.
Energy Leadership and Expertise
BEC’s founders collectively have more than 60 years of experience in the energy industry and have developed, built, acquired/sold, and managed more than 15 GW of electric energy projects, with a value of over $20 billion.
We have developed, financed, and managed the construction and operation of hundreds of behind-the-meter distributed generation projects and small utility-scale solar facilities throughout the United States. Our experience includes greenfield development, acquisitions, project optimization, permitting, power purchase agreements, interconnection, engineering, procurement, construction, financing, and operations. Our founders have personally invested in solar projects for which they developed and managed the construction and operation.
BEC is a member of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), American Clean Power, and the WSPP.
OUR TEAM
Our team has an extensive track record in the clean energy development and finance industry.
BILL CONNORS
Managing Director
An energy and utility veteran, Bill Connors brings broad experience in energy development, construction, origination, management, and accounting, as well as finance and regulatory affairs. Bill is the cofounder and managing director of BEC, a commercial-scale solar and BESS developer/owner/operator.
Prior to forming BEC, he held multiple senior executive roles within MDU Resources Group, Inc., a publicly held company (NYSE: MDU).
In these and former roles, Bill led the development, management, acquisition, and sale of electrical contracting companies, gas management service operations with pipeline capacity, and solar, wind, gas, and coal-fired generation assets, including the buildup and $644 million sale of MDU’s domestic independent power company (gas, coal, wind) and sale of a 600-MW gas development project.
He originated, negotiated, and managed over 11,000 MW in mid- to long-term solar, wind, gas, and coal power purchase agreements; fuel supply and transportation contracts; power plant operating and maintenance agreements; engineering, procurement, and construction agreements; wind and solar tax equity investments; and renewable energy credit sales contracts.
Bill also managed landfill biogas development and sales agreements, including renewable identification numbers and California low-carbon fuel standard credits and related pathway certifications.
Bill received his B.A. in Accounting and Finance from Carroll College, including a Certified Public Accountant accreditation, and earned his JD from the University of Washington School of Law.
DAVE BENSON
Managing Director
Dave Benson has been in the energy industry for more than 20 years, focused on developing and transacting on energy projects. He is a cofounder and managing director of BEC.
Prior to BEC, he was a senior partner and co-head of the global energy, infrastructure, and resources practice at K&L Gates LLP, one of the largest international law firms, with 48 offices around the world. Before K&L, Dave was a corporate partner and chair of the bioenergy practice at Stoel Rives LLP.
Dave’s industry experience in renewable energy includes developing, acquiring/selling, and financing (including tax equity financing) more than 8,000 MW of clean energy projects in North and South America, with an operating value of well over $10 billion. Throughout North America, Dave has developed, acquired, and financed large utility-scale wind projects, BESS projects, and numerous solar projects of all sizes, including portfolios that ranged from utility scale to nearly 1,000 MW of behind-the-meter commercial and industrial solar projects.
Dave is an active participant on multiple clean energy boards, including the Washington Clean Technology Alliance, the University of Washington Clean Energy Institute’s Technical Advisory Panel, Western Washington University’s Institute for Energy Studies, EarthGen (a nonprofit that creates sustainability education programs for low-income K–12 schools), and past vice-chair and board member of Spark Northwest (a nonprofit founded to build clean energy generation and efficiency projects for underserved communities).
Dave holds a B.S. in Finance from Arizona State University, a JD, summa cum laude, from Michigan State University College of Law, and an LLM, with distinction, from Georgetown University Law Center.
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