Liberty Mutual Investments, which oversees $124 billion on behalf of Liberty Mutual Insurance, is among the institutional investors committing $750 million to CenterNode Group, a new energy transition investment firm launched by The Forest Company. CenterNode is looking to deploy flexible capital to small and mid-sized solar and storage developers to bridge the widening gap in financing for US energy infrastructure.
“The US energy transition is entering its most capital-intensive phase at precisely the moment when traditional lenders have stepped back,” said CenterNode’s Seth Zeleznik.
CenterNode is targeting projects ranging from $5 million to $50 million. The firm plans to eventually expand into other energy infrastructure sectors.
Liberty Mutual’s Charley Poole said the investment in CenterNode is part of Liberty Mutual’s growing infrastructure strategy. Liberty Mutual has also backed Ara Partners, a Houston-based firm that invests in mid-sized companies decarbonizing industrial sectors.
