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Year Founded: 1983

AUM: $5.8B | Dry Powder: $838.4M

262 Harbor Drive, Stamford, CT 06902, US

First Reserve is a private equity investment firm that focuses on investment in the core segments of the energy sector. It specializes in growth capital, buyouts and industry consolidations and seeks to invest in companies based in the US, Australia and Europe

Key Contacts

  • Alex Krueger

    President & Chief Executive Officer

  • Patrick J. Carroll

    Chief Financial Officer

  • Edward Bialas

    Managing Director

Investment Preferences

  • Preferred Industries

    Commercial Products, Energy Transportation, Energy Equipment, Exploration, Production and Refining, Other Business Products and Services, Other Financial Services

  • Geographical Preference

    Australia, Europe, US

  • Preferred Deal Types

    Add-on, Buyout/LBO, PE Growth/Expansion

  • Other Investment Preferences

    Prefers majority stake, Prefers minority stake, Seeks ESG investments, Seeks Impact investments, Will syndicate

Investments By Year

Source: Pitchbook

Funds Closed

First Reserve Refuel Fund
Vintage: 2021

Size: $510.5M

Dry Powder: $300.5M 

Details: First Reserve Refuel Fund is a single-asset continuation buyout fund managed by First Reserve

First Reserve Fund XIV
Vintage: 2019

Size: $465M

Dry Powder: $102.6M

Details: The fund seeks to invest in vintage oil and gas companies

First Reserve Upstream Annex Fund
Vintage: 2017

Size: $325.9M

Dry Powder: $54.2M

Details: A buyout fund located in Greenwich and managed by First Reserve

Investments By Industry

Investments By Region

Source: Pitchbook

Key Investments

In September 2022, LineStar Integrity Services, via its financial sponsor First Reserve, acquired C&M Regulatory Pipeline Consultants for an undisclosed sum. C&M Regulatory Pipeline Consultants provides energy consulting services committed to helping operators navigate the complexities of federal and state regulations

In June 2022, Venterra Group, via its financial sponsor First Reserve, acquired Partrac, a provider of critical data & advisory catering to the offshore wind, ports and marine construction sectors

In May 2022, The Goldfield Corporation acquired Valiant Energy Services via its financial sponsor First Reserve for an undisclosed amount. Valiant Energy Services is a provider of construction services intended to serve the power, substation, transmission, distribution, and eco power sectors

In May 2022, GridTek Utility Services, via its financial sponsor First Reserve, acquired American Power, a subsidiary of Clark Construction Group, for an undisclosed amount. American Power provides power transmission and distribution intended to serve investor-owned utility companies in Arizona and New Mexico

In February 2022, Venterra Group, a wind energy services company received $31.06 million of development capital from First Reserve and other investors

In December 2020, The Goldfield Corporation, an energy infrastructure company was acquired by First Reserve through an estimated $194 million public-to-private LBO. Citizens Bank, Sumitomo Mitsui banking provided $125 million debt financing in the form of a $25 million revolving credit line and a $100 million term loan B in support of this transaction

In July 2019, First Reserve acquired Trillium Flow Technologies (“Trillium”), formerly Weir Flow Control (“WFC”), from The Weir Group PLC (“Weir”). Trillium Flow Technologies is a global designer, manufacturer and aftermarket services provider of engineered valves and pumps used in energy and broader industrial applications

In November 2018, First Reserve acquired Dominion Energy’s 50% interest in Blue Racer Midstream, LLC. The investment was partly funded by equity from First Reserve Fund XIII and investment funds affiliated with First Reserve. Blue Racer was a joint venture formed in December 2012 by Dominion and Caiman Energy II, LLC (“Caiman II”) to own, operate, develop and acquire midstream assets

In October 2018, First Reserve acquired Dresser Natural Gas Solutions from Baker Hughes, a GE Co. Dresser NGS makes natural-gas meters and pipeline-repair equipment

Other Details

First Reserve has raised $32 billion of aggregate capital since inception. It has completed over 750 transactions (including platform investments and add-on acquisitions), creating several notable energy companies. Its portfolio companies operate in six continents, spanning the energy spectrum from upstream oil and gas to midstream and downstream, including resources, equipment and services, and associated infrastructure.

First Reserve’s Private Equity funds follow a buy-and-build model and invest diversely across resources, equipment & services, and midstream / downstream sectors. The company’s latest fund FR Gtus Co-Investment is a co-investment fund managed by First Reserve. The fund is located in Stamford, Connecticut.

Acteon Group, AEW Capital Management, AMCI Group, Avista Capital Partners, Azimuth Energy Partners, BlackRock, Caithness Energy, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, China Investment Corporation, Fortress Investment Group, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Odyssey Investment Partners, Petroplus Holdings, Quintana Capital Group, White Star Petroleum are some of the co-investors who invest alongside First Reserve.

Source: Pitchbook, Company Website, Press Release