Lauren Nickoloff

Global alternative asset management firm TPG will acquire a majority stake in critical infrastructure provider Sabre Industries Inc. from Blackstone Energy Transition Partners in a deal guided by Latham & Watkins LLP, Kirkland & Ellis LLP, and Vinson & Elkins LLP, the companies announced Friday. According to the announcement, TPG used its TPG Rise Climate investment platform to obtain the majority stake, and the deal is supposed to be completed in the second quarter of 2026. Blackstone will keep its minority stake in Sabre, which initially received investments from Blackstone's managed funds in 2021, the companies said. According to the announcement, Sabre has 2,800 employees, and its clients include data centers and telecommunications companies. In a Friday article about the deal, Reuters reported that Sabre is worth $3.5 billion. In separate Friday statements, executives for all three companies praised the deal, with TPG partner Steven Mandel describing the transaction as "a significant opportunity." "We believe there is a significant opportunity for leading equipment providers to meet rising electricity demand and modernize a grid increasingly vulnerable to extreme weather events," Mandel said. "Sabre's leadership in transmission and distribution, combined with its specialized enclosures for the data center market, positions the company at the heart of these essential trends." TPG declined to provide additional comment Friday. Blackstone and Sabre didn't respond to requests for additional comment. TPG is represented by Kristen Grannis, James Garrett, John Miller, Jameson Miller, Kevin Donovan, David Lee, Talia Wyschogrod, Jennifer Boyd, Harrison Little, Alec Born, James Langlois, Katharine Moir, Greg Conyers, Ben Rosemergy, Victoria Wolfe, Alyssa Dantoin, Sandy Benjamin, Sahar Merchant, Elizabeth Gemdjian, Debbie Hinck, Susana Santos, Victoria Allen, Scott Joiner, C.J. Rydberg, Julia Hatcher, Josh Marnitz, Anna Dykema, Phil Goldberg, Harrison White, Amara Banks, Enrique Covarrubias, Shira Bressler, and Brandon Hemans of Latham & Watkins LLP and Scott Rolnik, Lauren Nickoloff, Shelby Lindholm, Emily Barber, Michael Urschel, Brandon Karas, and Jared Rusman of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Blackstone is represented by Benji Barron, Jordan M. Fossee, Zac Horne, Rylie Goldwait, Chet Wynne, Domonique Richardson, Jason McIntosh, Brian Russell, Patrick Darby, David Wicklund, Megan Hardy, Dane Rogerson, Hill Wellford, Kara Kuritz, Ryan Will, Matt Dobbins, Kelly Rondinelli, Becky Baker, Peter Goetschel, Shane Tucker, Kenneth Strain, Madeline O'Neill, Sarah Mitchell, Victoria Bahrami-Negad, Jamie Leader, Courtney Hammond, Rajesh Patel, Haley Titcomb, Fry Wernick, Brian Howard, Joyce Adetutu, Randall Johnston, Frankie Vélez, and Claire Connor of Vinson & Elkins LLP.

Feb 6

2 min

Kirkland & Ellis advised TPG on the financing for its acquisition of a majority stake in Sabre Industries, Inc., a provider of engineered critical infrastructure solutions for power utilities, telecom companies and data centers, from Blackstone. TPG will make the investment through TPG Rise Climate, the firm’s dedicated climate investing platform. Funds managed by Blackstone Energy Transition Partners, which first invested in Sabre in 2021, will retain a significant minority stake and continue Blackstone’s partnership with the company. The deal, which was announced February 6, 2026, is expected to close by Q2 2026, subject to customary approvals and closing conditions. Read the transaction press release The team included debt finance lawyers Scott Rolnik, Lauren Nickoloff, Shelby Lindholm and Emily Barber; structured finance lawyers Michael Urschel and Brandon Karas; and tax lawyer Jared Rusman.

Feb 6

1 min

Kirkland & Ells advised Ziff Davis, Inc. (Nasdaq: ZD) on a definitive agreement to sell its Connectivity division to Accenture (NYSE: ACN) for $1.2 billion in cash. Ziff Davis’ Connectivity brands are globally recognized in fixed broadband, mobile and Wi-Fi network design, intelligence, insights, testing and incident detection. These brands, including Ookla, Speedtest, Ekahau, Downdetector and RootMetrics, empower organizations to optimize networks, elevate digital experiences and ensure faster, more reliable connectivity. The transaction is currently expected to close in the coming months, subject to the satisfaction of certain closing conditions and receipt of required regulatory approvals. Read the transaction press release The Kirkland team included corporate lawyers David Klein, Andrew Norwich and Daniel Wolf; tax lawyer Sara Zablotney; executive compensation lawyer Rob Fowler; capital markets lawyers Sophia Hudson and Zoey Hitzert; antitrust & competition lawyer Daniel Zach; and technology & IP transactions lawyer Daisy Darvall.

Mar 3

1 min

Kirkland represented TPG in obtaining the financing for its majority investment in Trustwell, a provider of SaaS-based regulatory, compliance and traceability solutions for the food industry. Read the transaction press release The team included debt finance lawyers Scott Rolnik, Lauren Nickoloff and Bianca Ng.

Jan 9

1 min

Westchester Surplus Lines Insurance Co. and multiple Florida homeowners associations have ended their dispute in Florida federal court over the associations' more than $230 million insurance claim for Pensacola Beach condominiums damaged by Hurricane Sally. According to their joint dismissal stipulation filed Monday, Westchester Surplus and the homeowners associations have agreed to permanently dismiss their claims against each other. The insurer and the homeowners associations initially told the court in February that they decided to settle their dispute and planned to file a joint dismissal stipulation. Westchester Surplus and 15 other insurers began their suit against the homeowners associations in January 2023. According to their amended suit, an appraiser picked by the defendants filed "an egregiously overinflated" hurricane damages claim for more than $230 million. The insurers alleged that the defendants asked for an appraisal after Hurricane Sally hit and filed a more than $6.4 million sworn proof of loss claim. But, according to the insurers, this claim eventually "ballooned to an amount wholly detached from any actual damage resulting from the hurricane." "In particular, the defendants' selected appraiser submitted estimates to the appraisal panel that include charges that are wholly improper, overstated, unrelated, duplicative, and attempt to turn the defendants' legitimate loss into a once-in-a-lifetime windfall at plaintiffs' expense," the insurers alleged. "Defendants' appraiser increased the value of the claim from the unsolicited sworn proof of loss by over $225 million when he submitted an outrageous $233,030,601.80 claim to the appraisal panel, which raises significant questions concerning the appraiser's interest and honesty, as well as the fraudulent nature of the claim and its supporting documentation," they further alleged. In September 2023, the defendants filed counterclaims against the insurers, alleging that the insurers breached their insurance policies by wrongfully refusing to pay for the appraised hurricane damage. However, in September 2025, the presiding court nixed the defendants' $187 million appraisal award, ruling that the defendants' appraiser failed to properly state how much the condominiums were damaged by Hurricane Sally. Counsel for Westchester Surplus and the defendants didn't respond to requests for comment Tuesday. Westchester Surplus Lines Insurance Co. and multiple other insurers are represented by Alexandra J. Schultz, Juan P. Garrido and John D. Dickenson of Cozen O'Connor. The Portofino defendants are represented by Edward P. Fleming, Matthew A. Bush and Aaron T. McCurdy of McDonald Fleming LLP, Kurtis J. Keefer of Goede DeBoest & Cross PLLC and Charles F. Beall Jr. of Moore Hill & Westmoreland PA. The case is Westchester Surplus Lines Insurance Co. et al. v. Portofino Masters Homeowners Association Inc. et al., case number 3:23-cv-00453, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

Mar 3

2 min