
EQT, a global investment firm headquartered in Sweden, has announced that EQT Transition Infrastructure has agreed to acquire Scale Microgrids, a vertically integrated developer, acquirer, owner, and operator of microgrids and distributed energy resources from Warburg Pincus and other existing shareholders.
Scale Microgrids performs services for commercial & industrial (C&I) projects, EV fleets, and data centers, working with a variety of municipal, university, hospital, and agricultural customers, developers, and communities. Headquartered in Ridgewood, New Jersey, Scale’s portfolio consists of roughly 250 megawatts (MW) of operating and in-construction assets, with another 2.5 gigawatts (GWs) in its near-term pipeline. Scale deploys a variety of technologies including solar PV, battery energy storage, natural gas generators, fuel cells, and combined heat and power.
You may recognize the company from its cofounder’s participation as a keynote speaker in last fall’s GridTECH Connect Forum, an interconnection event since folded into the larger DISTRIBUTECH brand. Tim Hade, an Air Force veteran, described climate action as a war that we cannot afford to lose.
“We’re at a pretty pivotal moment,” he told Renewable Energy World. “And you can either look at it as a catastrophe or an opportunity.”
In the Scale cofounder’s eyes, California is the tipping point for global climate change policy. He likens Scale’s first-of-its-kind Santa Barbara virtual power plant project to storming the beaches of Normandy in World War II.
“We’re like- this is going to be the definitive battle of this broader war,” Hade described his thought process. “And just because we win this battle, doesn’t mean we win the war, but we have got to win this battle, and I think that applies to a lot of the big projects happening.”
EQT said it will support Scale Microgrids through “significant investments” in its commercial processes, tech platform, and project execution capabilities, with the goal of enabling the company to own and operate billions of dollars in distributed generation assets
“Today marks the start of an exciting new chapter for our company. EQT brings a depth of experience, resources, and capital that will enable us to continue pursuing our vision to power the world with distributed energy,” said Ryan Goodman, CEO of Scale. “I’m incredibly proud of what our team has built, and believe this transaction will enable us to unlock even greater opportunities for the customers, employees, and communities we serve. We’re appreciative of our past shareholders, led by Warburg Pincus, for their support in helping us get to where we are today.”
The transaction marks EQT’s first North American investment out of its recently launched Transition Infrastructure strategy, which is aimed at scaling businesses that “enable the transition to clean energy and a more resource-efficient, circular economy.” In December 2024, EQT announced the launch of the strategy and its inaugural investment in JUNIZ Energy, a battery energy storage system developer and operator. Since its inception over 15 years ago, EQT Infrastructure has invested over EUR 17 billion (~ $17.5 billion USD), including co-investment, in energy transition-related opportunities across 25 platform deals.
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EQT argues that Scale addresses several of today’s most pressing grid challenges, including rapid load growth from data centers and fleet electrification, power generation capacity constraints, and increased frequency of grid outages.