NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Energy Impact Partners LLC (EIP) today announced the formation of its first strategic equity fund focused on investments that seek to optimize energy consumption and improve sustainable energy generation. The fund’s first closing includes investments from energy industry leaders Southern Company (NYSE: SO), National Grid (NYSE: NGG) and Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) as limited partners.
EIP will work with its investors to adapt strategy to a changing energy landscape, to enable innovation, and to enhance operational excellence in utilities’ core businesses. Based in New York and San Francisco, EIP is led by a team of professionals who built their careers developing the strategic technology investment business at General Electric.
“Energy Impact Partners is honored to have three of the leading energy companies in the world as initial investors in our fund,” commented EIP Managing Partner Hans Kobler. “As EIP moves into full operating mode, we will turn our partners’ strategic priorities into practical investment theses, working closely with the companies that will be the building blocks of tomorrow’s global energy web.”
The firm intends to focus on the efficient consumption of energy and sustainable generation and distribution, such as:
- Smart buildings
- Smart grid
- Energy storage
- Distributed generation
- Connected sensors ‘The Grid of Things’
- Power management
- Data management and analytics
- Comprehensive energy services
EIP’s fund will invest in growth equity opportunities, companies with a proven product or service at the inflection point of their growth, and special situations involving targeted strategic sectors.
"Southern Company's focus on finding new, more efficient ways to meet customers' energy needs aligns with the objectives of this fund," said Southern Company Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "This strategic investment is an extension of our decades-long commitment to driving energy innovation to better serve our customers."
“We continue to focus on marrying the best innovation with rising customer expectations,” added National Grid CEO Steve Holliday, “and EIP will help advance that objective. Working with EIP will help us stay at the forefront of our changing industry and support us in providing safe, reliable and affordable energy for our customers.”
“New technology is driving tremendous change in our industry, and it’s important that we adapt to and embrace that change,” added Xcel Energy Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Ben Fowke. “Our involvement with EIP will help us better understand how to continue leveraging technology’s impact on our business to drive greater efficiency and innovation and meet the evolving needs of our customers as a trusted energy partner.”
About Energy Impact Partners
Energy Impact Partners (EIP) is an investment firm focused on companies optimizing energy consumption and improving sustainable energy generation. EIP is based on a collaborative strategic investment approach, pioneered by the fund’s principles at GE. EIP seeks to bring the best companies, experience and vision in the industry to bear on the emerging energy landscape.
About Southern Company
With more than 4.5 million customers and approximately 46,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast through its subsidiaries. A leading U.S. producer of clean, safe, reliable and affordable electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. For more information, visit www.southerncompany.com.
About National Grid
National Grid (LSE: NG; NYSE: NGG) is an electricity and natural gas delivery company that connects nearly 7 million customers to vital energy sources through its networks in New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It is the largest distributor of natural gas in the Northeast. National Grid also operates the systems that deliver gas and electricity across Great Britain.
Through its U.S. Connect21 strategy, National Grid is transforming its electricity and natural gas networks to support the 21st century digital economy with smarter, cleaner, and more resilient energy solutions. Connect21 is vital to our communities' long-term economic and environmental health and aligns with regulatory initiatives in New York (REV: Reforming the Energy Vision) and Massachusetts (Grid Modernization.)
For more information please visit our website: www.nationalgridus.com, or our Connecting website. You can also follow us on Twitter, watch us on You Tube, Friend us on Facebook and find our photos on Instagram.
About Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) provides the energy that powers millions of homes and businesses across eight Western and Midwestern states. Headquartered in Minneapolis, the company is an industry leader in responsibly reducing carbon emissions and producing and delivering clean energy solutions from a variety of renewable sources at competitive prices. For more information, visit www.xcelenergy.com or follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
