Podcast
The Infrastructure Investor Podcast
Hosted by PEI Group · EN
The Infrastructure Investor Podcast delves into the latest trends in private infrastructure investment, bringing you insightful interviews with many of the industry’s most influential leaders, as well as original analysis from our award-winning team of journalists. Visit infrastructureinvestor.com for more on the sector.
14episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Blackstone: Industry needs to go beyond ‘do no harm’ in data centre development
2w ago00:21:25Summary readyIn this special episode – based on a keynote interview done on 24 March at our Global Summit in Berlin – editor-in-chief Bruno Alves sits down with Sean Klimczak, Blackstone’s global head of infrastructure. As the world’s largest investor in data centres, a significant part of the discussion centred on how Blackstone is investing in the sector. Highlights included Klimczak’s call on the industry to move beyond a “do no harm” standard and add net benefits to the communities where data centres are built. He also spoke about how the data centre market will internationalise in 2026-27, with a particular focus on Asia-Pacific as a development hotspot. Other talking points included Blackstone's role as a major investor in US utilities at a time of surging power demand; the risks of what Klimczack termed the “private equity-ification” of infrastructure, as the asset class’s boundaries expand; and why Europe is “for sale” and seen by Blackstone as a tremendous opportunity.
Summary'Investors are sleepwalking' on Iran war risks
Apr 1600:28:48Summary readyIn this episode, editor-in-chief Bruno Alves sits down with Sadek Wahba, founder, chairman and managing partner of I Squared Capital. Sadek returns to the podcast to tackle a broad range of subjects, including I Squared’s cautious approach to investing in the AI infrastructure boom, why he believes the markets are underestimating the risks and impacts of the Iran war, the role of energy security, resilience in infrastructure investing, the growing role of private wealth in infrastructure, and much more.
SummaryAI, geopolitics, strategy drift - and other takeaways from the Global Summit
Mar 3000:17:21Summary readyInfrastructure Investor’s Global Summit, our flagship gathering in Berlin, attracted around 3,500 members this March for a week of networking and agenda-setting discussions, where the digital revolution, energy transition and a wealth of other topics were analysed, parsed and dissected by some of the most significant players in the industry. In this episode, PEI Group's head of special projects, real assets, James Linacre picks out key insights with senior members of Infrastructure Investor’s editorial team, including editor-in-chief Bruno Alves, deputy editor Kalliope Gourntis, Infrastructure Investor Deals editor Nathalie Tidman and PEI Group APAC editor Daniel Kemp.
SummaryIgneo: 'I don’t want to be on the phone to clients explaining why our valuations dropped'
Mar 2300:26:56Summary readyIn this episode, editor-in-chief Bruno Alves sits down with Niall Mills, global head of Igneo Infrastructure Partners. Igneo has been investing in the mid-market since 1994 and is one of the first managers to feature on the podcast with a full fund realisation behind them. We spend a good part of our discussion dissecting the lessons learned from exiting the 2009-vintage European Diversified Infrastructure Fund I, including why there’s value in a good auction process and the reasons behind Igneo’s decision to do quarterly valuations for their LPs. The discussion also touches on the mid-market, including how managers in the space can capitalise on the booming digital infrastructure sector, and Igneo’s steadfast adherence to core/core-plus at a time when many managers are climbing up the risk curve.
SummaryGreen energy investors brush off geopolitical turmoil
Feb 1000:25:18Summary readyThis episode is sponsored by Nuveen Infrastructure and Quinbrook The energy transition is one of the most prominent mega-trends driving investment in infrastructure today. Even as the current US administration is pushing back on the country’s net-zero commitments and scaling back federal incentives, other regions continue to support the decarbonisation agenda, attracting some of the largest players in private infrastructure. In 2025, China alone added more than 430GW of new wind and solar capacity, not far off the 585GW global additions posted in 2024, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). And more than half of all new vehicle sales in China last year were electric, showcasing the country’s burgeoning green credentials. In this episode of The Infrastructure Investor Podcast, Joost Bergsma, global head of clean energy at Nuveen Infrastructure, and David Scaysbrook, co-founder and managing partner at Quinbrook, discuss the many factors driving appetite for the energy transition despite the pockets of geopolitical hostility. While policy reversal might make the headlines, both still see plenty of exciting opportunities to fund the net-zero transition.
SummaryMid-market muscle: How smaller deals are powering the next US infrastructure boom
Feb 500:25:07Summary readyThis episode is sponsored by Ridgewood Infrastructure and I Square Capital At the start of 2026, infrastructure investors in the United States benefit from numerous tailwinds. Electricity demand is rising at the fastest rate in decades, industrial reshoring is gathering momentum, and the artificial intelligence revolution is continuing to accelerate. While many of the fundamentals are positive, infrastructure managers must navigate a complex environment in the US. Abrupt policy changes, alongside macroeconomic and geopolitical volatility, mean the path to success is far from straightforward. In this episode of The Infrastructure Investor Podcast, Ross Posner, managing partner at Ridgewood Infrastructure, and Gautam Bhandari, managing partner at I Squared Capital, discuss how mid-market managers can be best placed to deliver higher returns and secure favourable exits. Although their strategies differ, they both see plentiful opportunities as the US infrastructure market continues to grow and mature in the years ahead.
Summary
The AI revolution: How infrastructure is adapting
Jan 2800:25:19Summary readyThis episode is sponsored by Brookfield The infrastructure asset class is entering a defining moment. As energy transition pressures, geopolitics and capital intensity reshape the market, assets such as power networks and digital infrastructure are becoming central to economic competitiveness, rather than simply defensive investments. Artificial intelligence is accelerating this shift. Beyond the hype, AI’s growth depends on vast amounts of physical infrastructure – from power generation and transmission to advanced data centres and computers. Meeting that demand is pulling infrastructure managers into a global race alongside hyperscalers and governments, creating one of the decade’s most significant investment opportunities. This podcast is part of PEI Group's Private Markets 2030 programme exploring how private markets are evolving through the second half of the decade. In this programme, we unpack how managers can adapt, attract capital and deliver performance in an increasingly complex market. Joining us are two guests from Brookfield: Stewart Upson, co-president of Brookfield’s infrastructure group, and Udhay Mathialagan, a managing partner in the infrastructure group and CEO of Brookfield’s global data centre practice. They discuss the opportunities and risks for managers delivering the supporting infrastructure around AI and look at how investors are partnering with governments, hyperscalers and AI developers. Read more insights on the infrastructure AI journey from Brookfield’s Stewart Upson here.
SummaryWhat to expect after infra's record fundraising year
Jan 2200:25:46Summary readyEditor-in-chief Bruno Alves sits down with Americas editor Zak Bentley to provide a holistic view across the infrastructure fundraising market, taking in closed-end and open-end fundraising. According to Infrastructure Investor data, $289 billion was raised for closed-end structures in 2025, making it the largest-ever year for the asset class. Data from LP consultancy bfinance similarly suggests that 2025 is set to be the best fundraising year for open-end funds since 2022. Our discussion focuses on the similarities between closed and open-end fundraising – both highly concentrated markets; dissects the impact on strategies of a lasting shift to a two-year-plus fundraising timeline; explores why elevated redemptions are not yet a concern for open-end vehicles; and much more.
SummaryECP: US needs up to 400GW - ‘that’s not going to happen overnight’
Dec 1700:30:42Summary readyIn this year's last episode, editor-in-chief Bruno Alves sits down with Doug Kimmelman, founder and executive chairman of Energy Capital Partners. Today's discussion focuses on the US electricity market, which is experiencing a "shining moment" driven by unprecedented demand growth after 30 years of stagnation. Key drivers include the massive power needs of artificial intelligence and data centres, along with LNG exports, the onshoring of manufacturing, and the expansion of electric vehicles and crypto mining. This surging demand - which could require as much as 400GW of new capacity, including replacements for retiring coal and nuclear plants - is rapidly transforming the sector. With that in mind, we discuss how the market is prioritising slowing the retirement of existing generation, brownfield expansions, and fast-to-deploy solar and storage, while the reliance on natural gas increases despite turbine bottlenecks. We also explore how the presence of hyperscalers with strong balance sheets is reshaping the contracting environment, leading to longer-tenure, highly financeable power purchase agreements.
SummaryKKR: Parts of AI market running ‘a bit hot’ in one of tech’s fastest capex cycles
Dec 400:32:42Summary readyIn this episode, editor-in-chief Bruno Alves sits down with Waldemar Szlezak, KKR’s global head of digital infrastructure. In a wide-ranging discussion, they address whether there's a bubble forming around AI infrastructure and why parts of the market are overheating during one of the fastest capex cycles in tech history. They then explore the lifespan of data centre infrastructure compared to the rapid obsolescence of the GPUs that power it, touch on the industry's “coordination tax”, examine KKR's molecule to the rack strategy, and much more. We're going to be talking about digital infrastructure a lot at the Infrastructure Investor Global Summit, taking place in Berlin from the 24th to the 27th of March 2026. We have an early bird deadline offer expiring on the 12th of December, which you should definitely consider. So don't miss your chance to lock in discounted registration and join over 3,000 infrastructure decision makers – including 1,000 LPs from 50 plus countries – at the iconic STATION Berlin.
Summary