Data centers, reshored factories and an electrifying economy are putting immense pressure on the US grid.
One of the country’s largest public pension funds, California State Teachers’ Retirement System, is committing up to $2 billion to building up the US’s clean energy supply, in partnership with the asset manager Nuveen. CalSTRS is anchoring Nuveen’s second Energy and Power Infrastructure Credit fund with an investment of undisclosed size.
The fund, which is raising a targeted $2.5 billion, achieved a $1.3 billion first close a year ago with backing from Nuveen’s parent company TIAA along with Canadian, Japanese and Korean pension funds and global insurers.
The agreement also gives the $408 billion CalSTRS the option to invest in future funds from Nuveen’s energy infrastructure credit group.
Private credit
Nuveen’s energy credit business provides structured debt, credit facilities and preferred equity to energy and infrastructure developers. Recent deals have supported Pattern Energy’s SunZia wind and transmission project, battery storage developer Spearmint Energy, community solar operator Solar Landscape, and energy-efficiency companies Budderfly and Redaptive. The group has invested more than $13 billion over 20 years.
Nuveen’s Energy and Power Infrastructure Credit fund strategy includes natural gas and midstream infrastructure, but CalSTRS’ allocation is focused on “sustainable” deals, including renewable power, energy storage, industrial decarbonization, energy efficiency, and investments related to domestic manufacturing and AI data centers. The commitment to Nuveen is aligned with CalSTRS’ goal of achieving net-zero portfolio emissions by 2050.
