Transforming Power into a Competitive Advantage

We support Canadian Industry in building and implementing resilient Electricity Strategies

Driving lower Opex and enhanced competitiveness through contractual, operational, and investment-based levers

Markets, Technologies & Regulations are shifting: Are you prepared or exposed?

Electricity is undergoing a structural transformation—driven by massive load growth, a changing generation mix, new technologies, and Alberta’s most significant regulatory overhaul in twenty years.

For large-scale loads, power is no longer a static cost; it is now a driver of competitiveness, operational resilience, and long-term margin.

Industry Has Agency: Do You Know Where You Stand?

The "set and forget" era of procurement has evolved into a need for active strategy. While we are in a "calm before the storm," this window offers a unique opportunity to align your energy position with corporate goals. For boards and executives, the first step is gaining total clarity on your current exposure. Establishing this baseline is the only way to move from reacting to market volatility to using your energy economics as a proactive competitive lever.

Your Specialized Deal Team: From Board-Level Clarity to Execution

We begin by delivering a comprehensive assessment of your current standing, ensuring your leadership has a clear-eyed view of both risk exposures and opportunities. Once your baseline is established, we act as a seamless extension of your team to execute under your mandate—allowing you to remain focused on your core business. By translating analytical insights into customized roadmaps and implementing high-value contractual, operational, and investment-based levers, we ensure your electricity is a source of resilience and a driver of profitability.

Levers - Our Framework

Contractual

Optimizing your supply portfolio. We architect the optimal power supply mix based on your priorities, including retail contracts, hedging arrangements and Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).

Image of a transformer station

Operational

Increasing reliability and asset performance. We ensure operational continuity, then monetize asset flexibility against market signals while addressing technical drivers like power quality.

Image of a battery storage BESS system in front of wind mills and a mountain range

Investment-Based

Building commercially resilient energy assets. We evaluate "behind-the-fence" solutions—from solar to storage—to create permanent power cost reductions and structural margin protection.

Clients, Memberships & Supporters

TSX-listed Canadian Oil & Gas Company

Major Global Investment Bank

Privately-held Canadian Oil & Gas Company

TSX-listed Canadian Oil & Gas Company

Rondo Energy logo
Logo of Energy Storage Canada
Logo for Creative Destruction Lab Rockies' Nurture program
Calgary Chamber of Commerce logo
ElevateIP Alberta logo in purple and white.

Founders

Jan Poetsch portrait
  • Jan leads Arder’s operations and client value proposition, drawing on two decades of international leadership in the LNG sector.

    Prior to founding Arder, Jan served as Executive Vice President at PetroChina Canada, where he was accountable for Commercial, Marketing, IT, and Supply Chain functions, and served on the LNG Canada Executive Committee.

    Jan’s career began with Shell in London and The Hague, followed by a secondment to the Sakhalin 2 project as Contract Manager. In Canada, he provided M&A deal support before joining the LNG Canada Project as Commercial Deal Lead.

    Jan holds a Master of Science in Finance from Texas A&M and a Graduate Industrial Engineering degree from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. His background is further supported by CPA and CMA (Canada), ACMA and CGMA (UK) accounting qualifications, and the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) designation.

Portrait Sarah Black MacNiven
  • Co-Founder, President & General Counsel

    JD, LLM, B.Sc., ICD.D

    Sarah leads financing, legal, governance and external relationship management, including Arder's Advisory Board. She has held senior positions within LNG Canada (“LNGC”) / Shell and worked in investment banking with RBC Capital Markets, in law with McCarthy Tetrault, and had early career roles with the Privy Council Office in Ottawa and the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C. She has extensive capital markets experience and senior level commercial knowledge, having negotiated, evaluated and structured M&A, commercial and joint venture agreements for LNGC, and other previous clients.

    Sarah holds a mid-career LLM from Osgoode Hall Law School, a JD from the University of Calgary, and a First Class Honours Bachelor of Commerce from Queen’s University.  She is called to the bar in the State of New York and the Province of Alberta, and has completed the ICD-Rotman, Directors Education Program. 

Our Core Principle - Rigorous Focus

  • We deeply believe that we can only support clients if we truly understand their goals and act as an extension of their teams. This is our first and biggest focus area, and we strive to align our interests to those of our client at all times.

  • Our approach is informed and led by data. We take pride in rigorously applying analytics through all stages of an engagement.

  • The close incentive alignment with our clients and robust data analysis enable rigorously transparent solution delivery.