Image credit: AVK and Partners GroupAVK has secured an initial investment of more than $1 billion (£740 million) from Partners Group, marking the first external funding round in the power specialist’s 36-year history.
Partners Group has become the majority shareholder alongside AVK’s management, with the investment intended to support the company’s core power business and the expansion of an energy-as-a-service model for data centre operators.
The deal underlines the growing importance of power availability to data centre delivery. AVK said the capital would support on-site power infrastructure, including microgrids, as operators look for alternatives to waiting for grid capacity.
Speed-to-Power Became the Investment Case
AVK described speed to power as a strategic priority for data centre and AI infrastructure operators.
The company said the investment would provide significant capital for the buildout of on-site infrastructure, supported by a pipeline of more than 2GW.
“Speed-to-power is now a defining opportunity for European data centre operators. Our new partnership with Partners Group will allow us to meet our customers exactly where the market demands,” said Ben Pritchard, Chief Executive Officer at AVK.
The investment comes as electricity connection queues lengthen across European data centre markets, with power availability and timing determining more often whether planned capacity can move ahead.
“AI is driving one of the largest infrastructure buildouts in decades, and access to power is becoming a defining constraint,” said Nicholas Pepper, Managing Director for Infrastructure at Partners Group. “This constraint and lengthening connection queues are critical bottlenecks to growth in the European data centre market, which onsite generation can alleviate by accelerating speed-to-power.”
AVK Moved Further Into Energy-as-a-service
The investment also supports a broader shift in AVK’s operating model.
The company said it plans to fund, develop, own and operate on-site power solutions such as microgrids. Customers would then procure the resulting energy through power purchase agreements rather than carrying the cost and risk of developing the infrastructure themselves.
That moves AVK beyond supplying prime, standby, and dispatchable power systems. It places the company in a longer-term role in the infrastructure needed to deliver electricity to data centre sites, combining power development with financing and operation.
“By adding capital to our power solutions portfolio, we can turn speed-to-power from an ambition into action,” said Pritchard.
Microgrids Provided an Early Example
AVK has already begun putting the model into practice.
Earlier in 2026, the company worked with Pure DC on a 110MW on-site microgrid at its Dublin campus, designed to provide dispatchable capacity during early development phases before full grid connection capacity became available. Pure DC described the deployment as Europe’s first large-scale data centre microgrid.
The project showed how on-site generation can support sites where grid infrastructure is being delivered over a longer timeframe. Rather than replacing the electricity system, the Dublin project was designed to sit alongside future grid-supplied electricity in a hybrid configuration.
Partners Group also brings existing exposure to both sides of the opportunity. The investor said it has experience in decentralised energy and data centres, including its previous investment in pan-Nordic operator atNorth. Its wider data centre portfolio has included EdgeCore in the US, atNorth in the Nordics, GreenSquareDC in Australia, and Digital Halo in the Philippines and Malaysia.
Speed-to-Power Attracted New Capital
AVK’s first external investment in 36 years shows how the data centre power challenge is attracting capital in its own right.
The company is not simply raising funds to sell more equipment. The investment backs a model in which AVK can finance and operate infrastructure that brings power to data centre sites, while customers purchase energy through longer-term agreements.
The 2GW pipeline gives the model scale. The investment gives it the capital base to move forward.
