South Korean conglomerate SK has been exploring a sale of its US clean energy assets, said sources familiar with the situation.

One of its platforms, SK E&S, has been a prolific investor in the US market in recent years, as in 2021 it executed deals to both acquire battery energy storage developer Key Capture Energy (KCE) and take an ownership stake in LS Power’s clean energy platform REV Renewables. KKR also made a KRW 2.4trn (USD 2bn) preferred investment in SK E&S in November 2021.

It also took a minority stake in Summit Carbon Solutions and acquired EV infrastructure business Evercharge.

However, SK went through a restructuring of sorts, which resulted this past November in the merger of SK Innovation and SK E&S, which brought all of its energy business under one umbrella. Innovation housed the company’s refinery, petrochemical, lubricant and battery affiliates, while E&S, aside from the US platforms, also housed the company’s hydrogen and liquefied natural gas (LNG) assets.

SK sold a minority stake in KCE in 2022 to Stella Investment, a South Korea-based investment firm. The following year KCE underwent a leadership change which led to the company’s founder Jeff Bishop leaving and installing Brian Hayes as its new CEO, effective January 8, 2024.

Since then, the firm has been happy about its investment in KCE, and it is likely that its other US holdings might be more vulnerable.

At one point, REV Renewables attempted to go public in 2022 and, through public filings, indicated that SK E&S made a USD 300m investment in REV in exchange for a 10.71% stake, in a deal which closed on December 9, 2021. The agreement had also contemplated an additional USD 100m investment in a private placement, but it wasn’t clear if that had been executed or not.

REV had to withdraw its public offering in September 2023. The business has since bulked up considerably following its lead sponsor LS Power’s close out its USD 2.1bn buyout of Algonquin Power & Utilities (P&U) non-regulated renewables business on January 8.

Earlier regulatory filings indicated REV would be acquiring a 6,200 MW pipeline within the US to add to its existing fleet as part of the deal.

SK E&S, REV, LS Power, Summit Carbon Solutions and Evercharge did not answer several calls or emails seeking comment.

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