AVK appoints former UK Energy Minister as Chair
Author: Joe Peck
AVK, a provider of power systems and electrical infrastructure for data centres, has appointed former UK Energy Minister Claire Perry O’Neill as Chair of its board, following the completion of a majority investment by Partners Group.
The investment, first announced in August 2026, included an initial commitment of more than $1 billion (£741 million) to support the company’s next phase of growth.
Claire brings more than 30 years of experience across finance, business, and government. She began her career at Bank of America before completing an MBA at Harvard Business School and taking roles at McKinsey & Company and Credit Suisse First Boston.
She was elected MP for Devizes in 2010 and subsequently held several ministerial positions, including Minister of State for Energy and Clean Growth. In that role, she led the UK’s bid to host COP26 and served as its first President-Designate.
Since leaving the UK Government, she has been Managing Director of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and a Board Director at Scottish Power. Her current roles include Operating Director at Gren Group, Non-Executive Director at Occidental Petroleum and SGX Group, and Board Chair of Climate Impact X. She is also a global advisor to McKinsey & Company and Climate Investments.
Investment supports AVK’s expansion
As Chair, Claire will work with CEO Ben Pritchard, the board, and the leadership team as AVK expands its operations. Her remit includes supporting the growth of AVK Capital, the company’s funding arm, which finances, owns, and operates on-site power systems for data centre developers.
Through its Energy as a Service (EaaS) model, AVK enables customers to pay for power through a power purchase agreement (PPA) without upfront capital expenditure or ownership of the assets.
Access to power has become a major constraint on data centre and AI infrastructure development in the UK and Europe, with new grid connections taking years to secure in some markets.
AVK says that its approach uses on-site generation to bring capacity online sooner, with more than 400 employees across 10 hubs in the UK and Europe, a modular manufacturing facility in Haydock, and an EaaS pipeline of more than 2GW.
Claire comments, “I’m delighted to join AVK as Chair at such an important moment. The completion of Partners Group’s investment gives AVK the backing to grow faster, and the timing could not be better.
“Grid capacity has become one of the biggest barriers to economic growth and the energy transition in the UK and Europe and all of my previous experience suggests that no matter how ambitious the policies, grid expansion faces real constraints.
“On-site, flexible power generation has a real role to play as the UK Government’s new Data Centre Covenant makes clear, and AVK has the expertise and ambition to deliver this capability.
“My priority is to help AVK’s team turn that potential into growth, working closely with Partners Group to scale AVK Capital and bring speed to power to more customers.”
Ben Pritchard, CEO of AVK, says, “Claire’s appointment is an exciting moment for everyone at AVK. She has shaped energy policy at the highest level, led the UK’s early work on COP26, and advised some of the world’s largest businesses on the energy transition.
“With Partners Group’s investment now complete, we have the capital to deliver speed to power at scale. Claire’s understanding of how policy, investment, and infrastructure fit together will be invaluable as we grow AVK Capital and help our customers bring new capacity online faster.”
Earlier this year, AVK also energised what it describes as Europe’s first large-scale data centre microgrid at Pure DC in Dublin.
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