MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--I Squared Capital, through its ISQ Global Infrastructure Fund III, has completed a growth capital investment in RPower, LLC, a distributed energy resource platform. I Squared has targeted up to $400 million of equity capital to fund growth initiatives including the development, construction, and ownership of distributed energy resources that provide resiliency and services to both the electric grid and commercial and industrial users. RPower’s dispatchable energy solutions can provide the reliability necessary to support the continued integration of renewable resources and facilitate the transition to a more sustainable future. The RPower management team has decades of combined experience in the power sector, specifically within distributed energy resources and asset optimization.
Founded in 2021, RPower focuses on behind-the-meter microgrid resiliency solutions that provide commercial and industrial customers, and other critical community infrastructure customers, with power during grid outages. “We are thrilled to partner with I Squared Capital, and more importantly look forward to working with them to scale our platform,” said Jeff Starcher, CEO of RPower. “I Squared’s equity and expertise will enable us to expand our offerings and provide our customers and the electric grid with innovative, customized solutions that address their specific needs.”
This investment in RPower reflects I Squared Capital’s commitment to investing in resilient infrastructure assets that enable the energy transition to a less carbon intensive future. I Squared Capital has targeted over $3.0 billion across eleven energy transition portfolio companies working in renewables, storage, grid stability, energy efficiency solutions, distributed generation, behind-the-meter, clean fuels, and the electrification of transportation on three continents.
The proliferation of renewables and electrification of the economy have placed significant stress on aging electric grid infrastructure and extreme weather events have increased the frequency of utility outages. “The need for onsite resilient generation has become more important over the past decade,” said Jamie Smith, COO of RPower. “Behind the meter, distributed energy resources, such as back-up generators, energy storage and other technologies, play a critical role in not only providing power when needed to customers, but also improving the reliability of the electric grid when dispatchable, localized generation capacity is required for grid stability. The fresh capital from I Squared will enable us to deliver on our significant backlog of projects.”
In addition to closing this growth capital commitment, RPower is also announcing the appointment of Lynn A. Lednicky as Chief Financial Officer. Lynn has extensive experience in the energy sector over a 30-year career, which includes leadership positions at Newport LLC, Dynegy, Inc., and Destec Energy.
Independence Point Securities LLC served as RPower’s exclusive financial advisor for this transaction. Mussalli Law served as corporate counsel and BoyarMiller served as transaction counsel. White & Case served as legal counsel to I Squared Capital.
About RPower
Founded in 2021, RPower brings together experienced veterans from some of the most well-known companies in the energy and distributed power generation industries to leverage their deep market knowledge and technical expertise and deliver fully optimized resiliency and microgrid solutions. Headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas, and founded by former MP2 Energy CEO, Jeff Starcher, RPower designs, installs, maintains, and optimizes the right microgrid system to meet each customer’s specific needs and goals.
RPower offers a wide spectrum of both packaged and a la carte energy solutions, from Resiliency as a Service to microgrid to design-build-transfer contracts, to energy management services, backed by an industry-leading team. Our resilient solutions help companies ensure the continuity of their business operations through increasingly frequent and longer duration grid outages. RPower’s sustainable energy resources enhance our customers bottom lines and promote the addition of grid tied renewable energy. For more information, visit www.rpower1.com or LinkedIn.
About I Squared Capital
I Squared Capital is an independent global infrastructure manager with over $37 billion in assets under management focused on investing in North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. The firm has more than 215 professionals across its offices in Miami, Hong Kong, London, New Delhi, Singapore, Taipei, and Sydney. I Squared Capital has invested in a diverse portfolio of 72 companies in 59 countries with over 27,000 employees across the utilities, energy, digital infrastructure, transport, environmental infrastructure, and social infrastructure sectors providing essential services to millions of people around the world.
No discussion with respect to specific companies should be considered a recommendation to purchase or sell any particular investment. The companies discussed do not represent all past investments. It should not be assumed that any of the investments discussed were or will be profitable, or that recommendations or decisions made in the future will be profitable.
