TMI270

48 TMI | ISSUE 270 digitisation project withHSBC – tomove payments electronically fromaccounts payable, onto accounting, and then straight throughHSBCnet directly out to the beneficiaries.” As part of this digitisation drive, Cheniere has also significantly reduced the number of cheques it uses. “Likemany energy companies, we weremakingmultiple small value payments with cheques. Not only was this highly inefficient for Cheniere in treasury, but it also impacted accounts payable and accounting productivity, as well as reconciliations processes. As such, we have nowmovedmore of our paper cheques database towards electronic settlement methods, delivering impactful results for treasury – and for our customers.” Kicking it up a gear With a significant proportion of Cheniere’s payments now digitised, it was time to aim for the next level of best practice. “We were keen to leverage the centralisation and digitisation work done with HSBC as a springboard for a complete treasury transformation. So, we took the decision to implement a global treasury management system (TMS),” says Ballard. Although this part of the project fell into the vendor rather than bank space, HSBC played an important supporting role in the successful implementation of the chosen TMS, namely Kyriba. Smith explains: “Having our global sector head and the Americas team for NRU based in Houston, the global hub of the oil and gas industry, means that we are extremely well connected with our clients – and can connect them together as peers, when appropriate. Learning that Cheniere had selected Kyriba as its TMS, we were able to link Brook’s teamup with other oil and gas treasurers in Houston who had recently deployed the same TMS. This gave them the opportunity to trade ideas and share best practice, ultimately enabling a smoother TMS implementation journey.” The value of this local support ecosystem in Houston should not be underestimated, Ballard believes, “Cheniere’s corporate office is based in Houston, so having HSBC partner with us on-the-ground, where we are, means that they can support us in our operational sweet-spot. What’s more, banking is a commoditised business, and what sets HSBC apart is the depth of relationship and service. “I can call David or Steve up if there is a challenge we are trying to solve and invite themover to the office. We then work jointly together to come up with ideas and solutions. It’s a strategic partnership – and one that would not work so smoothly if we were just corresponding by phone or email. The fact that HSBC can connect us with our peers in Houston to enable treasury to performbetter, is also invaluable. And Cheniere is now paying this forward, sharing tips with other HSBC clients: it’s a virtuous cycle,” says Ballard. Delivering concrete benefits The benefits of this deep partnership between Cheniere and HSBC speak for themselves. “Cheniere is transforming itself to use best in class tools and technology within treasury to deliver valuable productivity and efficiency within our finance teams to allow our leaders tomake themost informed decisions to impact our organisation in a positive way and continue to drive growth and aid operational efficiency.” As a result of all this hard work, Cheniere has centralised reporting and payment processing, improved cash visibility and control, achieved working capital efficiencies, and significantly enhanced investment income. Ballard could not be happier: “Treasury is now adding real dollar values to Cheniere. Historically, we may only have tracked expenses; however, nowwe are able to track howwe are adding value thanks to this centralisation and transformation journey.That’s an extremely powerful outcome, which has only been made possible through the efforts of Cheniere’s treasury team, and our internal and external partners, particularly HSBC.” Demonstrating the bank’s commitment to Cheniere and to helping the treasury team to constantly improve, Andrada concludes: “Cheniere has made incredible leaps forward over the last eighteen months, and now has a thoroughlymodern treasury function, centralised inHouston, that is fit-for-growth. But the journey doesn’t stop here; going forward we will be looking at innovative solutions, such as next generation virtual accounts, to help Brook and his teamdeliver even greater value for Cheniere through financial, operational and sustainability wins.” n Treasury Manager, Cheniere Energy, Inc. BROOK BALLARD Cheniere Energy,Inc.is an international energy company headquartered in Houston,Texas,and is the leading producer of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the United States.Cheniere provides clean, secure,and affordable energy to theworld, while responsibly delivering a reliable, competitive,and integrated source of LNG, in a safe and rewardingwork environment. Cheniere’s operations,construction and development also support energy and economic development across the United States.By 2020,Cheniere is expected to be a top-5 global provider of LNG. ABOUT CHENIERE