Franklin Liu

Franklin is an economist in Frontier Economics’ energy practice, with 15 years of experience across consulting and in-house roles in the energy sector. He advises government departments, market bodies and regulators, industry associations, transmission and distribution businesses, generators, and major project developers. He works across Australia, New Zealand and Singapore markets.

Franklin has deep expertise in energy market modelling, leading engagements spanning long-term system planning, commercial forecasting, market design, energy policy and regulatory advice. He is experienced in designing modelling approaches and scenarios tailored to the commercial, policy, and technical realities of each assignment. Using Frontier Economics’ proprietary energy42 modelling tool, he helps clients make better decisions through the use of optimisation, statistical and game-theoretic techniques.

Long-term system planning and cost-benefit analysis

Franklin has led numerous modelling projects to assess the impact of major energy infrastructure such as network augmentation, Renewable Energy Zones (REZ), and major generation projects.

Examples of his recent work include:

• Assessing the consumer benefits of a proposed Renewable Energy Zone in New South Wales that regulators subsequently authorised.
• Modelling the optimal generation and transmission network design to support the decarbonisation of mining operations in a remote region.
• Advising on the market benefits and strategic insurance value of several proposed large-scale pumped hydro projects in the National Electricity Market.

Future market forecast and economic advice

Franklin also helps clients identify emerging risks and investment opportunities as the generation mix and transmission topology change rapidly over the coming decades.

Examples of his recent work include:

Using modelling to provide evidence-based advice on the future role of transmission, distribution and gas networks for a range of network businesses and industry associations.

• Assessing the impact of emerging issues such as data centres, electrification and electric vehicle charging on future generation and network investment, as well as consumer bills.
• Advising New South Wales distribution networks on the value of developing distribution-level battery storage to reduce network augmentation and unlock latent capacity for utility-scale renewable generation.

Energy price forecast and commercial advice

He has also delivered numerous energy price forecasts, helping governments understand future market trends, and supporting market participants in making informed decisions about portfolio revenue and asset operations.

Beyond standard revenue forecasts for renewables, storage and gas assets, he helps:

• Developers and asset owners optimise operating and contracting strategies and determine the right sizing for proposed assets across a range of future market scenarios.
• Large energy users reshape consumption patterns and identify behind-the-meter opportunities to reduce energy price exposure.
• Governments and regulators pinpoint critical moments in the energy transition where consumers may face bill shocks and assess potential policy response.

We work as one team across the world

In Asia-Pacific, we do this from offices in Australia and Singapore. We work as a single team with expertise and people brought together as required by the problem we are solving for our clients. Reach out to any of our economists and consultants to find out how we can help you.