Ara Partners, a private equity firm, has launched Ara Energy Decarbonisation, a new strategy focused on reducing carbon emissions from conventional energy assets across North America.
The Haslam Family, through its family office HF Capital has partnered with Ara in building the strategy and committed up to $275 million to acquire, optimise operations and decarbonise energy businesses and assets across North America.
The strategy will be led by Shameek Konar, former CEO of Pilot Company, who brings over 25 years of energy and commodity market expertise. The strategy will focus on investments in conventional energy value chains, including power generation, merchant biofuels, and energy supply and distribution businesses. Konar will also serve as a Senior Advisor to Ara Infrastructure.
The energy sector contributes over 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Despite the rise in renewable energy, grid constraints mean natural gas continues to fill the energy gap, with peak demand expected until the 2040s. To meet critical climate goals, reducing emissions from key energy sources is vital.
Ara’s decarbonisation approach targets the growing energy demand driven by data centres and AI technologies, while addressing renewable energy interconnection challenges. Its strategy hinges on two pillars: GHG emissions reduction and waste management, both integrated and evaluated across all investments. The firm prioritises businesses with strong synergy between emissions reduction potential (ERP) and financial returns.
“The world’s energy demands are increasing and complex, and renewable power needs time and support for it to fulfil rising global energy demand. Ara’s builder skillset, portfolio network and decarbonization management knowledge is perfectly positioned to attack the carbon-intensive energy sector. This partnership and new strategy will significantly reduce carbon emissions and play a meaningful role in transitioning our economy to a low-carbon future.” said Shameek Konar, Partner and Head of Ara Energy Decarbonisation.
Jimmy Haslam of HF Capital stated, “We are proud to commit significant capital behind Shameek and his talented team to drive meaningful change in the energy sector. Beginning with my father, our family built Pilot from one gas station in 1958 to a business with nearly 800 locations across the US and more than $50 billion in revenue. Shameek succeeded me as CEO of Pilot in 2020 and did an exceptional job leading, growing, and optimizing the business until its sale earlier this year. We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Shameek and are proud to make a significant commitment behind him and his team of talented colleagues.”
In 2023, Ara delivered 10.8 million metric tonnes of CO2 emissions reductions and eliminated 424,000 metric tonnes of waste across its private equity and infrastructure strategies. Troy Thacker, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Ara, added, “This new strategy complements our existing Private Equity and Infrastructure strategies, allowing us to achieve larger-scale climate impact and delivering a clear path to a renewable future.”