Blackstone closes Energy Transition Partners V at $8.7bn, 50% above prior fund

Blackstone has held the final close of Blackstone Energy Transition Partners V at $8.7 billion, 50% above the previous fund in the series, Data Center Dynamics reported. The fund was oversubscribed, the publication said.

BETP V began its investment period in June and has already funded three platform companies: Kindle Energy, an independent power producer; Fisterra, a Spanish energy transition firm; and Viridon, a private electric transmission utility. The fund has also acquired three companies focused on energy efficiency and resiliency — Flow Control, Dresser Utility Solutions and DarkVision, the publication reported.

Flow Control supplies flow control solutions and components for data center liquid cooling. Dresser makes meters, regulators, pressure relief valves and repair products for gas and water utilities; DarkVision is a Canadian provider of technology-enabled asset inspection services.

In May Blackstone completed an IPO of its data center real estate investment trust. It also announced a $5.34 billion investment in US natural gas firm Williams to fund five behind-the-meter projects aimed at data center power demand in North America.

Blackstone said it had monetized mature investments from predecessor funds, including the sale of US battery storage firm Aypa Power and the sale of a majority stake in Sabre Industries. It also completed an IPO for Legence, a mechanical contracting and engineering services firm serving mission-critical data center and other markets.

“We believe there is a generational opportunity for experienced investors in the energy transition to provide solutions to the challenges posed by growing demand for electricity,” said David Foley, global head of Blackstone Energy Transition.

Blackstone's transition franchise also includes the €2bn Eurowind deal cleared by EU regulators in August, as this publication reported.