Alternative asset and private equity investor KKR announced a new strategic partnership with Australian solar energy company CleanPeak Energy, committing A$500 million (USD$325 million) to accelerate the growth of CleanPeak Energy’s distributed energy platform.
The investment from KKR will support the development of a pipeline of distributed solar, battery storage and micro‑grid solutions for Australia’s commercial and industrial (C&I) sector.
CleanPeak, co-founded by Philip Graham and Jon Hare in 2017, operates over 50 distributed energy generation sites across Australia, including more than 140MW of solar assets and 35MWh of battery energy storage systems. It is currently managing over A$200 million in construction projects and has a further 100MW of solar and 300MWh of battery projects in development.
KKR’s funding will support CleanPeak’s expansion of rooftop solar, utility-scale solar, battery storage, and microgrid projects.
Neil Arora, Partner and Head of KKR’s Climate Transition strategy for Asia, said:
“By combining CleanPeak’s proven operating platform with KKR’s global network, operational expertise, and deep experience across our energy and infrastructure teams, we are well positioned to unlock significant opportunities for corporate customers looking to decarbonize and reduce their energy bills.”
The deal marks the first Asia Pacific investment, and the sixth transaction globally, from KKR’s Global Climate Transition Strategy, launched by the firm in August 2023, and dedicated to investing in solutions at scale to support the transition to a low-carbon economy.
The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals. It highlights the growing demand for distributed renewable energy solutions in Australia’s commercial and industrial sectors, according to the companies.
Jon Hare, CleanPeak’s Chief Operating Officer, said:
“CleanPeak’s distributed energy approach reduces network costs which make up a significant portion of the all-in cost of retail electricity and results in more competitive power prices for our customers.”
