January 2026 Research Update
Private Equity Energy Tracker
Explore the updated list of recent energy holdings of 20 global private equity firms.
As of January 2026, fossil fuel companies still account for 64% of private equity firms’ energy portfolios, down just one percentage point from the previous year. At this pace of decline, private equity would not fully exit fossil fuels until at least 2090, decades after climate scientists have warned that the global energy system must rapidly transition away from fossil fuels.
Selected Reports
View all reports by Private Equity Climate Risks here.
NOVEMBER 2025 UPDATE
Mapping Private Equity’s Gas Fleet: Climate Footprint, Health Impacts, and AI-Driven Demand
A November 2025 briefing adds gas-fired power plants to our flagship report, the Private Equity Climate Risks Scorecard, revealing that these firms are linked to an additional 82 million metric tons of CO₂-equivalent emissions per year, or roughly the same climate impact as the annual electricity use of seventeen million U.S. homes.
JUNE 2025 UPDATE
A Look at Private Equity Transition Funds: Energy Innovation or Greenwashing?
A June 2025 report examines private equity’s role in propelling the climate crisis through investments in false solutions and provides due diligence resources to institutional investors looking to transition energy portfolios.
APRIL 2025 UPDATE
Private Equity Energy Trackers
New Global Fossil Fuel Asset Tracker: Explore a new searchable list of fossil fuel assets owned by 20 global private equity firms, including gas pipelines, coal-fired power plants, oil and gas drilling operations, LNG terminals, and gas power plants.
2024 REPORT
Private Equity Climate Risks Scorecard & Report
With over a trillion dollars in energy investments that generate high greenhouse gas emissions, private equity firms have an outsized role in accelerating the climate crisis.
New research for this edition of the scorecard exposes the staggering extent of these investments, revealing that the energy portfolios of leading private equity firms are responsible for 1.17 gigatons of annual emissions. That’s 1.17 billion metric tons of CO2 equivalent—concentrated in sectors like upstream fossil fuels, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals, and coal plants.
Major private equity firms have invested over
$1 trillion
in energy since 2010, mostly in fossil fuels
78% of KKR’s energy portfolio companies invest in fossil fuels, with at least
$9 billion
in gas and LNG transportation and storage
Power plants owned by Carlyle emitted roughly
14 million
metric tons of CO2e in 2021
DEMANDS FOR PRIVATE EQUITY
Society can’t afford to let private equity continue to pollute under the shroud of darkness and put people’s retirement at risk. The policymakers and regulators who govern financial markets, and private equity investors, must require comprehensive disclosures and plans to transition out of fossil fuels.
- Align with Science-Based Climate Targets To Limit Global Warming To 1.5⁰C
- Disclose Fossil Fuel Exposure, Emissions, and Impacts
- Report Portfolio-Wide Energy Transition Plan
- Integrate Climate And Environmental Justice
- Provide Transparency On Political Spending And Climate Lobbying
Press
