NorthernLights Advisory Services is a specialized, employee-owned technical advisory firm delivering high value Owner’s Engineering (OE) and Independent Engineering (IE) services across the full spectrum of power generation, storage, and transmission technologies. Our experienced team—averaging more than 20 years in the industry—supports developers, owners, lenders, investors, and utilities in:

  • Solar PV (utility-scale, distributed, community solar)

  • Wind (onshore and offshore)

  • Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) (standalone, co-located with solar/wind, and hybrid configurations)

  • Hydropower (conventional, pumped-storage hydro, and run-of-river)

  • Geothermal

  • Natural gas-fired (simple-cycle peaker plants and combined-cycle facilities)

  • Nuclear

  • Biomass and biofuels

  • High-voltage transmission and grid infrastructure (substations, HVDC, interconnection facilities, and grid modernization)

We also excel in hybrid (solar+BESS, gas-fired+BESS, etc.) project technical due diligence & optimization, interconnection & transmission congestion/curtailment studies, advanced modeling & digital twins (especially for BESS and gas plants), multi-revenue stream & merchant revenue underwriting support, full-lifecycle operating performance reviews & O&M forecasting, data center & behind-the-meter / co-located load integration, enhanced ESG / Equator Principles Plus compliance, M&A and portfolio-level technical due diligence (buy-side and sell-side), repowering assessments (solar, wind, BESS, and conventional plant upgrades, including coal-to-gas conversions), asset optimization, and decommissioning planning and financial assurance (increasingly required for regulatory compliance and lender comfort).

Using our proprietary advanced modeling platforms, we deliver precise, data-driven insights for project identification, development, performance forecasting, risk mitigation, repowering feasibility, and end-of-life planning. Our advanced modeling assists developers in identifying and developing landmark projects based on cost, schedule, incentive, and location (and many more) criteria established with the developer.

Services can be scoped modularly or as comprehensive full-lifecycle packages. Early engagement from site screening through COD, repowering studies, and end-of-life maximizes value by reducing risks, delays, and cost overruns.

OWNER’S ENGINEERING SERVICES

We provide proactive, owner-centric support tailored to each technology, with full-lifecycle coverage from early-stage development through COD, operations, repowering, and decommissioning.

  • Early-Stage Development & Feasibility

    • Advanced site screening, site control services, resource/fuel assessments, and project identification using proprietary modeling tools.

    • Interconnection & transmission congestion/curtailment studies (including detailed curtailment & congestion impact assessments).

    • Wind assessment services (detailed wind resource assessment, wake modeling, CFD analysis, and power curve performance analysis) for onshore and offshore wind.

    • Solar resource assessment and solar tuning & performance optimization modeling.

    • Comprehensive BESS Use-Case Optimization & Revenue Stacking Modeling (including multi revenue stream & merchant revenue underwriting support).

    • BESS-specific services: site suitability, initial sizing/optimization via our Advanced BESS Digital Twin, and hybrid solar + BESS optimization studies.

    • Technology evaluation, equipment/vendor qualification, fatal-flaw studies, and project scoping.

    • RFP/tender preparation, bid evaluation, and contractor/vendor selection support.

    • Interconnection services and data center & behind-the-meter / co-located load integration studies (including dedicated gas-fired generation support for data centers).

    • Fuel supply & LNG/pipeline integration assessments (fuel contracting reviews, supply reliability studies, pipeline lateral design support, and LNG terminal tie-in evaluations).

    • Turbine procurement and Long-Term Service Agreement advisory (vendor qualification, bid evaluation, and negotiation support for scarce H-class or advanced turbines).

  • Design & Engineering Phase

    • Preliminary and detailed design reviews across all disciplines, including power system studies.

    • Value engineering and optimization using advanced modeling.

    • Plant modernization, efficiency upgrades & flexibility enhancements (detailed technical and economic evaluations of turbine upgrades — advanced blades, combustors, or controls — faster start/ramp capabilities, Flex-Power packages, and efficiency packages targeting >60–63% efficiency, including performance modeling, outage planning, and ROI analysis).

    • Digital twin & advanced performance modeling for gas plants (plant-specific digital twins for real-time optimization, predictive maintenance, dispatch simulation under volatile markets, and integration with renewables or storage).

    • Hydrogen blending & hydrogen-ready plant assessments and carbon capture readiness & integration studies (CCUS).

  • Procurement & Contracting

    • Full contract review, negotiation, and administration (EPC, O&M, PPA, interconnection, supply agreements).

    • Constructability reviews, risk assessments, resilience planning, and serial defect analysis.

    • Technical advisory for BESS-as-a-Service or Performance-Based Contracting Support and LTSA reviews, spare parts strategies, and outage optimization.

  • Construction & Commissioning (Through COD)

    • Full QA/QC, HSE, progress monitoring, inspections, and claims management.

    • Commissioning support and performance/acceptance testing.

  • Operations, Maintenance & Asset Lifecycle (Including Repowering and Decommissioning)

    • Full-lifecycle operating performance reviews & O&M forecasting for all technologies.

    • BESS Degradation Modeling & State-of-Health (SoH) Forecasting and solar degradation & soiling studies.

    • Useful life analysis, lifetime assessments, condition monitoring, training, and customized O&M manuals.

    • Repowering assessments (solar, wind, BESS, and conventional plant upgrades, including coal to-gas conversion assessments with infrastructure reuse, permitting deltas, and cost-benefit analysis).

    • Emissions compliance & regulatory support (detailed emissions control system reviews — dry low NOx, SCR upgrades — compliance modeling under evolving state/federal rules, and Equator Principles/ESG reporting tailored to gas-fired assets).

    • Grid stability & ancillary services optimization (studies for synchronous condenser conversion, inertia provision, reactive power support, and participation in capacity/ancillary markets).

    • Enhanced ESG / Equator Principles Plus compliance, environmental compliance, and permitting support.

    • Technical support for insurance claims and risk management related to fires, floods, tornadoes, and other natural disasters.

    • Decommissioning planning and financial assurance.

    • Predictive maintenance & AI-driven performance analytics, Virtual Power Plant (VPP) & Aggregator Program Integration, battery second-life & end-of-life strategies, fire safety, thermal management & hazard modeling, and cybersecurity & controls/EMS validation.

  • Additional OE Services

    • Full project/construction management, technology validation, post-handover troubleshooting, and ongoing advanced modeling for optimization.

INDEPENDENT ENGINEERING SERVICES

We provide objective, finance-focused due diligence and certification with the same comprehensive coverage, including explicit review of site control, permitting, and major project participants.

  • Pre-Finance Due Diligence & Independent Engineer’s Reports

    • Advanced yield/revenue modeling (wind, solar, etc.).

    • Independent technology reviews.

    • Independent curtailment assessments.

    • Fatal-flaw/red-flag analysis.

    • Serial defect analysis

    • Grid integration studies.

    • Site control documentation reviews.

    • Permitting status/requirements, and ESA documentation reviews.

    • Congestion/curtailment assessments and multi-revenue stream & merchant revenue underwriting support.

    • Hybrid project technical due diligence & optimization.

    • Major participant reviews of the owner, sponsor, offtaker, O&M providers, EPC contractors, and other key counterparties.

    • Equator Principles reviews.

    • Useful life reviews

    • Warranty reviews.

    • Repowering assessments.

    • Financial model reviews.

    • M&A and portfolio-level technical due diligence (buy-side and sell-side).

    • Advanced modeling & digital twins (especially for BESS and gas plants).

    • Data center & behind-the-meter / co-located load integration studies.

    • Decommissioning planning and financial assurance reviews.

    • Full-lifecycle operating performance reviews & O&M forecasting.

    • Gas-specific reviews including plant modernization & efficiency upgrades, fuel supply & LNG/pipeline integration, emissions compliance & regulatory support, coal-to-gas conversion assessments, turbine procurement & LTSA advisory, hydrogen blending & CCUS readiness, and grid stability & ancillary services optimization.

  • Contract, Financial & Market Support

    • Independent review of all key project agreements (EPC, equipment procurement, PPAs, energy storage agreements, O&M, shared facilities, asset management, interconnection, turbine/generator supply, and LTSA).

    • Pro forma validation incorporating all relevant forecasts and provisions.

  • Construction, Commissioning & Post-Construction

    • Monitoring for lender drawdowns, performance verification, asset condition assessments, fitness-for-service evaluations, remaining useful life analyses, repowering readiness evaluations, and M&A and portfolio-level technical due diligence.

    • Full-lifecycle operating performance reviews, insurance technical support, advanced modeling based monitoring, and decommissioning readiness evaluations.