About
René Pigot is a partner at Accuracy. He has nearly 20 years of experience providing advisory and expert services primarily in the telecom, energy and retail sectors.
He has extensive experience acting as an economic and financial expert in disputes. He regularly provides both written and oral expert evidence before courts and regulatory authorities.
René also frequently supports corporate boards, management teams and private equity firms on complex strategic and transactional projects, assisting them in navigating high-stakes decisions.
René speaks French, English and German.
Qualifications
- Master’s degree, HEC Paris
- Master’s degree in engineering, Ecole Centrale Lille
In-depth expertise
René is regularly appointed as an economic and financial expert in disputes and has testified as an expert witness. He assists both claimants and defendants in assessing and valuing damages stemming from contractual breaches, early contract termination, collusion, abuse of dominance or intellectual property infringement.
René also advises decision-makers on complex projects combining finance and strategy, such as business plan modelling, synergy assessment or value creation assessment across the telecoms, energy and retail industries where he has deep expertise.
Example of engagements
Financial and strategic advisory
- Multiple due diligence and transaction advisory mandates for mobile network operators (MNOs and MVNOs) and fixed operators (fibre and copper-based, B2C and B2B) across Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, supporting mergers, acquisitions, IPOs or market entry strategies
- Assistance to an infra fund in its strategic thinking on the potential acquisition of a NetCo, carved out from a large operator
- Support to a French fibre infrastructure operator in assessing its long-term financial trajectory following the massive deployment of fibre networks, including sensitivity analysis to the performance of its contracted commercial operators
- Support in the development of a MOX fuel facility linked to the closure of the nuclear fuel cycle, by assessing the value creation for the industry and assistance in discussions aiming to set up strategic partnerships between stakeholders
- Robustness assessment of the French Atomic Energy Commission’s medium- and long-term plan for its decommissioning and remediation activities
- Assessment of the cost allocation mechanisms for a long-term nuclear waste depository facility among waste producers, including the development of proposals for the French government to harmonise reserve assessments and cash-contribution profiles.
- Due diligence on several renewable energy producers (solar- wind- biomass-based) to assist investors in acquisition and growth financing decisions
- Due diligence and valuation support to an institutional investor for its acquisition of a minority stake in a listed energy-sector player with strong growth ambitions in South America
- Strategic and financial planning relative to the deployment of a telecommunications transmission infrastructure in Guinea Conakry
- Review of the economic viability of the distribution network operator concessionary business model, as part of the large renewal of its contracts with municipalities
- Critical review of the business plan for the large-scale deployment of smart meters, assessing associated financial impacts
- Comprehensive review of the business models of energy storage market players as part of the evaluation of potential disruptive technology and its associated monetisation
- Development of a financial model for infrastructure projects in West Africa (water networks, power generation) in preparation for a group IPO, supporting capital raising efforts
- Review on behalf of several institutional investors of the business model of market intermediaries in charge of structuring, certifying, and financing energy-efficiency initiatives
- Assistance of a large LNG market player in the definition of its market dynamics and pricing strategy
- Assistance in the design of several multi-billion joint purchasing agreements between major retailers and assessment of expected synergies
- Development of the business plan for a joint venture between a global leader in environmental services and a CO₂ storage solutions provider
- Strategic and financial advisory services to a carbon composite manufacturing company in its search for an investor to support its growth strategy execution
Economic and financial expertise
- Economic and financial expert involved in the assessment of damages for many litigation cases in the telecommunications sector (including unfair handset subsidies, unfair 5G promotional campaigns, alleged national roaming restrictions, undisclosed consumer credit, discriminatory maintenance of the copper network, deployment delay of the fibre network, etc.)
- Robustness assessment on behalf of the French State of the nuclear new build programme’s cost model and the corresponding remuneration levels expected by the operator, based on different regulatory schemes and financing arrangements
- Assessment of the economic equilibrium relative to a take or pay contract for the provision of electricity to electro-intensive industries
- Assessment of the damages suffered by the major French electricity provider as a result of the French State’s implementation of a decree securing additional nuclear power–based electricity for alternative operators.
- Review on behalf of the French Government of the financial exposure of EDF to the Sizewell C project in the context of the withdrawal of the Chinese group CGN
- Economic modelling in the context of a claim challenging a major merger in the gas storage market before the State Council
- Economic and financial expert mandated by an LNG market player in the context of an inquiry from a competition authority, suspecting an abuse of dominant position
- Support to the French DSO in its negotiation with the regulator regarding the wholesale tariff (“TURPE”)
- Assessment of the damage suffered by an independent distributor following the termination of its contract with a major high-end ECG manufacturer
- Expert financial analysis and quantification of damages for one retailer in a high-profile case involving misleading TV promotions and product availability from one of its competitors
- Assessment of catchment areas and related competition risks for a large retailer before the French competition authority in connection with a landmark transaction (acquisition of 200 points of sale)
- Assessment of the clear disruption of contractual equilibrium in a joint purchasing agreement between two retail parties within arbitration proceedings
- Economic and financial expert in the context of private enforcement proceedings relative to various cartels (decommissioning and nuclear waste treatment services, laundry detergents, home and personal care products, packaged flour, truck industry, fresh milk products, etc.) and assessment of related damages
- Economic and financial expert for a retailer in the context of an inquiry by the European Commission, suspecting anti-competitive behaviour