I Squared Capital (ISQ), which bought HGC for $1.9 billion four years ago and then what is now Exa Infrastructure for $2.1 billion last month, said it has set up Cube Green Energy as a “renewable energy platform dedicated to accelerating the energy transition to a zero-carbon economy”.
Gautam Bhandari (pictured), managing partner at ISQ, said: “Using our platform building strategy, we look to initially commit up to $500 million over the coming years to build Cube Green Energy into a leading renewables company that can help enable Europe’s transition to a zero-carbon economy.”
He and his colleagues have collected a group of energy executives to run the new venture, including CEO Raghuveer Kurada, formerly of General Electric’s Energy Financial Services, and Hussain Shalchi, former head of strategic joint venture at Danish power company Ørsted.
Bhandari said that the new operation follows ISQ’s existing investments in the area. It “has invested over $6.5 billion in transition energy, including $4 billion in 12 renewable energy companies globally since 2014, and we are continuing that strategy with a world-class management team that brings deep experience, industry knowledge and on-the-ground presence to address an unmet market demand”
ISQ said new unit “will develop, repower, construct, and operate wind and solar farms, as well as invest in the deployment of associated emerging technologies such as battery storage and green hydrogen”.
Cube Green Energy’s initial focus will be “the mature renewables markets in continental Europe that are at the forefront of the energy transition”, said ISQ.
Kurada added: “Companies and governments must innovate to replace base load power with renewables to meet ambitious climate targets.”
