KKR closed a $19.2 billion global infrastructure fund, some of which is earmarked to address the Gulf’s growing need for more resilient energy and digital build-outs.
The private equity giant is already pouring billions into data centers in the Gulf, committing $5 billion across the Middle East over the past 18 months. Its head of Middle East investing said the new fund will “support the region’s next phase of growth,” in a statement to Semafor.
Last week KKR and Blackstone signed a roughly $16 billion lease on Kuwait’s national pipeline network.
Only months after Iranian drones struck AWS data centers in the UAE and Bahrain, casting doubt on whether the region’s big bet on digital infrastructure could pay off, KKR’s moves are a vote of confidence. Still, the bulk of KKR’s new vehicle is bound for North American and European investments.