I Squared Capital is “aggressively pursuing” greenfield renewables opportunities in Australia and will likely launch a new platform this year, Global Chief Investment Officer Gautam Bhandari told Infralogic.

“Australia needs to build sustainable grid infrastructure that will require hundreds of billions of dollars,” he said. I Squared Capital will focus on onshore wind, solar, and batteries, starting with shovel-ready or operational assets, he said.

The Miami-headquartered manager wants to deploy USD 500m-700m in equity via the platform, with the option for additional spend, according to a source familiar. The capital will come from I Squared’s global and growth markets infrastructure vehicles.

The manager earlier this year launched its fourth global flagship fund, targeting USD 15bn. It is also fundraising for the ISQ Growth Markets Infrastructure Fund II, which is targeting USD 3bn. Bhandari declined to comment on fundraising.

I Squared is yet to decide whether the Australian platform will be structured under HEXA Renewables, its existing pan-Asian development company, which has centralised engineering and procurement capabilities, said the source.

It has begun talks with landowners and developers in the country to identify and procure project sites.

I Squared Capital currently operates three platforms in Australia: waste and recycling firm SOILCO; gas and renewables remote area power provider, Octa (formerly Clean Energy Fuels Australia); and transport equipment lessor Rentco.

APAC opportunities

Elsewhere in Asia Pacific, where the manager is on track to deploy USD 5bn, it is focusing on city gas and transport in India, as well as deploying organic capital to build data centres across APAC, he said.

The fund manager will continue to target logistics in the Philippines, he added.

It is building an institutional cold storage platform in the country and last week announced a new deal in Royale Cold Storage. In March 2025, it acquired Philippine Coastal Storage & Pipeline Corp, a fuel storage operator.

The manager has also been focusing on social infrastructure with Formera Senior Care, an elderly day care platform in Taiwan, through its Growth Markets Fund.

Formera Senior Care currently owns 70 facilities – nine are operational, 25 will be commissioned this year, and the rest will be operating in 2026, the source familiar said. Once all facilities come online, Formera will service 6,000 seniors daily.

“Asia has been consistent with its desire to attract capital and is a region focused on re-industrialisation, especially as Chinese supply chains get reoriented,” said Bhandari.