Hybrid Event: Ritesh Kumar - Navigating Power Markets: Instruments and Risk

IAQF & Thalesians Seminar Series: Navigating Power Markets: Instruments and Risk. A Seminar by Ritesh Kumar.

6:00 PM Seminar Begins 7:30 PM Reception

Fordham University McNally Amphitheater 140 West 62nd Street New York, NY 10023

Hybrid Event

Free Registration! For Virtual Attendees: Please email web@iaqf.org for the link.

Abstract: The power market is characterized by unique market dynamics, price volatility, physical constraints, and the continuous interaction between electricity generation, transmission, demand, and financial markets. This presentation provides an overview of power market trading, key trading instruments, and risk management practices used by market participants to navigate these complexities.

It introduces the fundamentals of power market trading and explores the major instruments used to manage price and volume exposure, including physical and financial power contracts, forwards, futures, options, and other structured products. The presentation also examines the key risks faced by market participants, such as price, volume, basis, liquidity, credit, operational, and regulatory risks, and discusses approaches to identifying, measuring, and mitigating these risks.

Bio: Ritesh Kumar is an energy specialist with more than 18 years of experience in energy modeling, risk management, price forecasting, asset valuation, and the pricing of structured instruments.

Ritesh currently works at Balyasny Asset Management as a Quantitative Risk Researcher in Commodity Risk Analytics. Prior to that, he worked at AES Clean Energy as a Quantitative Risk Manager, where he led a team of analysts responsible for pricing prospective deals and modeling risks for AES Clean Energy’s multi-billion-dollar portfolio. His work at AES focused primarily on renewable power, including solar, wind, and battery storage.

Prior to AES, Ritesh worked at NRG Energy, where, as a Risk Manager, he led a team of analysts managing risks across various ISOs, including ERCOT, PJM, NYISO, NEPOOL, and MISO. Before joining NRG Energy, Ritesh worked at Deutsche Bank as an Assistant Vice President, where he led a team of 10 analysts responsible for performing valuations for commodities and FX portfolios comprising positions across multiple geographies, including the Americas, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.

Ritesh has published several scholarly and peer-reviewed articles on energy modeling and risk management in leading finance journals and has pioneered novel solutions in these areas.

Ritesh earned a Master of Business Administration in Finance from Rice University in Houston and completed a certificate course in Mathematical Finance from IIQF. He also earned a Master’s degree in Data Analytics from Middle Georgia State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology.