Alessandro Gregori, chief financial officer at CPFL Renováveis, is only 39, but as one of its longest-serving executives he has helped steer the seven-year-old renewable power specialist through phases of both growth and lull.

Now growth is back on the agenda for the company, set up specifically to exploit the potential of Brazil’s fast-emerging renewable energy sector – but this time under the guiding hand of one of China’s deep-pocketed power giants.