Mubadala backs renewables software growth

Mubadala Investment Company has taken a significant minority stake in Power Factors, deepening Abu Dhabi’s exposure to the software layer of the global renewable energy industry as operators confront larger, more complex and increasingly hybrid clean-power portfolios.

The transaction brings Mubadala alongside Vista Equity Partners, the existing investor in Power Factors, and positions the Abu Dhabi-based global investor behind a company whose systems are used across wind, solar and energy storage assets in more than 70 countries. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Power Factors, headquartered in the United States, provides software, services and hardware used by renewable-energy producers to monitor assets, analyse performance, manage technical operations and oversee commercial functions. Its Unity platform is designed to give operators a single system for managing renewable fleets spread across geographies, technologies and power markets.

The company says it supports 70 per cent of the world’s top 50 renewable-energy producers and serves more than 600 customers across 18,000 sites. Its platform manages about 310 gigawatts of wind, solar and energy storage capacity, a scale that places the business at the centre of the fast-expanding market for digital infrastructure supporting clean-energy generation.

Mubadala’s investment will support Power Factors’ product development and international expansion, with particular emphasis on artificial intelligence, storage controls and hybrid energy systems. The company is expanding Unity REMI, its renewable-energy management intelligence engine, across its product suite to help operators interpret operational data, identify problems faster and improve returns across large portfolios.

Abdulla Mohamed Shadid, head of energy and sustainability in Mubadala’s private equity unit, said the investment reinforced Mubadala’s long-standing commitment to renewables, which began with the creation of Masdar more than two decades ago. He said software-driven monitoring, analytics and intelligent control had become critical as renewable portfolios scale globally and asset owners seek higher performance, value and yield.

Julieann Esper Rainville, chief executive of Power Factors, said renewable-energy portfolios were becoming larger, more integrated and harder to manage at scale. She said the investment would help the company build an AI-driven suite of renewable-energy management solutions for customers whose portfolios are expanding across solar, wind, storage and hybrid assets.

The deal reflects a shift in clean-energy investment from generation assets alone towards enabling technologies that improve reliability and financial performance. Renewable power capacity has grown sharply worldwide, but rising penetration of variable solar and wind has increased the operational burden on owners, grid operators and asset managers. Software platforms that can unify data from turbines, inverters, batteries, power plant controllers and market systems are becoming essential to maintaining uptime and reducing revenue leakage.

Power Factors has grown through acquisitions as well as product development. Founded in San Francisco in 2013, it acquired Ekhosoft in 2016, Arista Renewable Energies in 2018, Greenbyte and 3megawatt in 2021, and Inaccess in 2022. Vista Equity Partners, Energy Impact Partners and Quantum Energy Partners acquired the company in 2021, creating a platform with broader reach across asset performance management, supervisory control and data acquisition, energy management systems and commercial asset management.

Mubadala’s entry adds a sovereign investor with deep links to energy transition assets, infrastructure and technology. The company’s broader portfolio spans energy, healthcare, technology, financial services and advanced manufacturing, while its renewables exposure includes Masdar, one of Abu Dhabi’s flagship clean-energy companies. The Power Factors transaction gives Mubadala a position in the operating systems behind renewable fleets rather than only in physical generation capacity.

The timing is significant. Renewable power capacity reached a record 5,149 gigawatts globally in 2025, accounting for nearly half of installed electricity capacity. Solar remained the largest driver of additions, while wind and battery storage continued to expand as governments and utilities worked to strengthen energy security and cut emissions. At the same time, grid congestion, curtailment, volatile power prices and storage integration have made renewable operations more technically demanding.

The software opportunity is being shaped by those pressures. Operators increasingly need platforms that can forecast equipment faults, optimise dispatch, manage battery performance, support compliance with grid codes and connect operational decisions to revenue outcomes. AI tools are being promoted as a way to move beyond dashboards towards automated diagnosis and faster response, though adoption still depends on data quality, cybersecurity controls and integration with legacy systems.