AVK secures $1bn investment from Partners Group
Author: Joe Peck
AVK, a provider of power systems and electrical infrastructure for data centres, has secured an initial investment of more than $1 billion (£743 million) from global private markets investment firm Partners Group, which will take a majority stake in the UK-based power infrastructure company.
The investment is intended to support AVK’s expansion and fund the development of on-site power infrastructure for data centre operators under an ‘energy as a service’ (EaaS) model.
Ben Pritchard will retain a significant shareholding and continue as Chief Executive Officer, alongside the existing leadership team.
The investment is the first external funding round in AVK’s 36-year history, with it continuing to supply prime, standby, and dispatchable power infrastructure for data centres and other critical applications.
AVK says the funding will support its strategy of funding, developing, owning, and operating on-site power infrastructure, including microgrids, whilst the company currently has a pipeline of more than 2GW.
Under the EaaS model, data centre operators can procure energy through power purchase agreements (PPAs), rather than directly funding and managing large-scale on-site energy developments.
AVK’s existing operations are supported by its manufacturing facility in Haydock, in the North West of England, and a workforce of nearly 400 people across 10 hubs in the UK and Europe.
Ben Pritchard, Chief Executive Officer at AVK, comments, “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.
“From the moment we launched our first microgrid, we recognised the challenge and the opportunity facing developers and operators globally. By adding capital to our power solutions portfolio, we can turn speed-to-power from an ambition into action.
“I am excited to lead AVK into this new chapter alongside Partners Group, leveraging the firm’s deep operational expertise in the data centre sector and power markets.”
Investment targets on-site power infrastructure
Partners Group has already invested in decentralised energy and data centres in Europe, including the pan-Nordic data centre platform atNorth. It also has experience investing in behind-the-meter energy infrastructure for data centres in the USA.
Nicholas Pepper, Managing Director, Infrastructure at Partners Group, notes, “AI is driving one of the largest infrastructure buildouts in decades, and access to power is becoming a defining constraint. This constraint and lengthening connection queues are critical bottlenecks to growth in the European data centre market, which on-site generation can alleviate by accelerating speed-to-power.
“AVK, with its deep expertise, track record, and pan-European footprint, is well positioned to address this issue as a one-stop-shop for data centre power solutions. We see an exciting growth opportunity for AVK and we look forward to supporting the management team in its next chapter.”
Earlier in 2026, AVK energised a large-scale data centre microgrid at Pure DC’s campus in Dublin. The company says the project was the first of its scale for a data centre microgrid in Europe.
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