South Korean conglomerate SK Group is to acquire Key Capture Energy (KCE), a US developer, owner and operator of energy storage projects.
SK E&S, an affiliate of SK, has reached an agreement to buy KCE and the transaction will “significantly accelerate” KCE’s growth plans.
It will also allow SK E&S to build a “market leading energy storage and clean energy platform” in the US.
Founded in 2016 with offices in Albany, Houston, and Salt Lake City, KCE has 254MW of standalone energy storage projects in construction and operation and a development pipeline of 3000MW of storage projects across the US.
Jeff Bishop, co-founder and CEO of Key Capture Energy, said: “We are extremely excited to welcome SK E&S as our new owner.
“SK E&S’s investment marks their confidence in our team, our strategy, and in the tremendous potential of the US energy storage market, which is estimated to be a $8.5bn annual market in 2026.”
SK E&S has made investments in the US across the energy solution value chain in recent years which include the acquisition of California’s largest behind-the-meter energy storage portfolio in 2019, an investment in Sunrun and the formation of a joint venture in 2020 to accelerate the adoption of renewables, the electrification of homes, and the transition to a connected and distributed energy system.
KCE recently invested in hydrogen technology company Plug Power.