KKR deal ‘validates HMC’s transition strategy’: Di Pilla

HMC Capital chief executive David Di Pilla has doubled down on his growth ambitions for the asset manager’s energy transition play after locking in a $603 million commitment from KKR that would fast-track a 5.7 gigawatt pipeline of projects, free up the balance sheet and still give it upside from the push to low-carbon energy.

The investment by the private-equity giant, which was first reported by The Australian Financial Review’s Street Talk column on Thursday, involves $355 million of up-front funding and $248 million to fund the venture’s first major battery project, a sector gaining in importance as Australia shifts away from coal power.