Talent is the lifeblood of a global consultancy and AMALA Clean Energy Advisors has been fortunate to have recruited several high caliber young professionals who have made major contributions to our success over the past few years. Among them are Ambalika Khanna, Florida Huff, and Devanshi Patnaik, each of whom bring strong ‘integrator’ capabilities, which they have been able to further hone at AMALA by collaborating closely with the company’s seasoned multi-disciplinary global experts. 

All three share graduate training at Georgetown University, where AMALA's Managing Director Migara Jayawardena serves as a faculty member and where the firm maintains an affiliation with the Global Human Development (GHD) Program. Mr. Jayawardena credits Georgetown with providing a fantastic pool of very smart and professionally driven graduates, while noting that AMALA offers them real-world opportunities to deepen their expertise and gain a better strategic perspective in energy investments and reforms, where they can meaningfully contribute to the company’s advisory work. "They always deliver," noted Noureddine Berrah, AMALA's Director for Energy, "working closely with others on our team to reliably produce high-quality results." The three young professionals echo this sentiment, crediting Georgetown University and AMALA for preparing them well to step into roles of responsibility, with their academic training laying the foundation and AMALA positioning them in critical client-facing roles where they continue to grow through on-the-job upskilling.

At AMALA, Devanshi, Florida and Ambalika have contributed to multiple investment initiatives, including the design of a de-risking facility for renewables in the Philippines, transaction advisory for clean energy investments in the Caribbean, performance evaluation of a solar deployment and network strengthening project in Mongolia, and support to the mobilization of Euro 3 billion in investments tied to renewable energy concession extensions in Italy, to name a few. Beyond transactions, they have also helped translate experiences into flagship knowledge products to support client reform efforts. This includes guidance on accelerating  geothermal development in small island settings, a publication on various approaches to estimating investor risks, research on challenges with integrating variable renewable energy (VRE) technologies such as wind and solar, a proposal with strategic options for transitioning to greener energy systems to inform a council of regional energy ministers, and a series of industry interviews AMALA is conducting (in collaboration with the GHD program at Georgetown University) with thought leaders on navigating the energy transition. They have also contributed to the design and execution of several participatory workshops with client stakeholders to disseminate knowledge and develop consensus around key issues applying a unique Object-Oriented Project Planning (OOPP) approach utilized by AMALA.

AMALA Young Professionals Profiles:

Ambalika Khanna

Ambalika Khanna, an Energy Finance Analyst, began working at AMALA while completing a dual Master of Public Policy (MPP) and Business Administration (MBA) at Georgetown University. Coming from an interdisciplinary program that trained her to approach complex problems from multiple angles, she was drawn to AMALA precisely because the firm operates the same way, blending technical, financial, and policy expertise in its advisory work on clean energy development in emerging markets. While at AMALA, she was a key team member that advised the Philippine Department of Energy (DOE) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on de-risking geothermal prospects to mobilize private capital in support of its sustainable development goals. She led a risk-informed techno-financial analysis assessing the commercial and economic viability of 30 prospective projects, producing insights that informed the design of an ADB-backed geothermal de-risking facility. In her words, "If my classes at Georgetown taught me how to build a financial model, working at AMALA helped me connect it to real-world decision-making. It pushed me to go beyond the mechanics and truly wear the interdisciplinary hat when looking at investment decisions. That kind of training is essential when working on complex international development problems." She is now co-managing the advisory and development oversight of a key renewable energy transaction where AMALA is the lender technical advisor,  and preparing a training for a client on making risk-informed (using stochastic modeling) investment decisions in clean energy. More broadly, Ambalika specializes in work at the intersection of public policy, sustainable finance, and investment strategy, with experience spanning clean energy, education, healthcare, and digital governance.  

Florida Huff

Florida Huff is an Energy Analyst at AMALA and completing her Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) specializing in International Development and Business Diplomacy at Georgetown University. Her background in international economics and development, including her prior work at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), sparked a strong interest in the challenge of expanding reliable and affordable energy services in emerging markets. “Achieving this requires bridging financial analysis, policy design, and market strategy” said Florida, noting that “this is why I was drawn to AMALA, where I have worked with various experienced specialists to deepen my understanding of how interdisciplinary expertise is applied to advance clean energy investments.” At AMALA, Florida has contributed analytical and strategic support across a range of engagements spanning financial and economic analysis, market assessment, and knowledge development. She developed a cost-benefit model assessing the performance of a utility-scale solar PV plant in Mongolia and helped evaluate a grid enhancement and renewable energy investment funded by the World Bank. She was also a key author of a handbook on geothermal development in the Caribbean, examining the potential for regional energy trade and the importance of addressing environmental and social risks in line with international standards. She is presently analyzing an evolving barrier to navigating the clean energy transition, which is the integration of greater shares of intermittent resources such as solar and wind power. Through these experiences, she has strengthened her ability to connect robust quantitative analysis with broader strategic and policy considerations that shape investment decisions in emerging markets.

Devanshi Patnaik

Devanshi Patnaik is a Manager for Energy & Strategy at AMALA and a graduate of Georgetown University’s Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) program, where she specialized in International Development and Business Diplomacy. Her training in infrastructure and climate finance reinforced a simple insight: clean energy investments move only when financial viability, institutional capacity, and political realities are aligned. That realization drew her to AMALA, where she deepened her specialization in energy finance while coordinating expertise across technical, regulatory, and environmental and social dimensions that are needed to advance well-rounded investments. At AMALA, she has led analytical work across the full project cycle of energy investments spanning policy design, transaction due diligence, implementation oversight, and performance evaluation. In parallel, she has also managed the work of the firm’s global team of multidisciplinary experts and client relationships with governments, utilities, and development finance institutions, ensuring that rigorous analysis translates into investment decisions that can withstand financial and institutional scrutiny.  Through this work, she has honed a skill set that combines quantitative rigor, strategic problem-solving, client-facing communication, and cross-cultural team leadership. The way she sees it, “The energy transition demands integrators. The technical experts, financiers, and policymakers each see a different piece of the puzzle. My role and the mentorship of our team’s senior specialists have given me the privilege to connect those perspectives, pressure-test them against real constraints, and help shape durable investment and policy decisions across the world.” Ms. Patnaik’s broader experience spans international climate engagements, regulatory reform, and development strategy to inform decision-making across governments and global policy forums.