Blackstone unveils $100-billion ambition for infrastructure

Blackstone Group, the world’s biggest private equity manager, is eyeing more than $100 billion in infrastructure investments with a new strategy anchored by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

PIF agreed to commit $20 billion to the pool, and Blackstone plans to raise the same amount from other investors, the New York-based asset manager said in a statement on Saturday. With leverage, Blackstone expects to have more than $100 billion in purchasing power for infrastructure projects, primarily in the US. The agreement between Blackstone and PIF is a non-binding memorandum of understanding, and the organisations are continuing to negotiate terms, they said.

The partnership comes as top executives, including Blackstone Chief Executive Officer Steve Schwarzman and KKR & Co co-CEO Henry Kravis, descend on Riyadh for the inaugural Saudi-US CEO Forum, a weekend of dealmaking. The meetings, which have already yielded billions of dollars in deals between companies including oil giant Saudi Aramco and General Electric, are taking place as US President Donald Trump visits the kingdom.

Infrastructure investing has gained renewed attention as Trump’s administration vows to direct more private money toward improving roads, bridges and airports.

The asset class also fits the bill for liability-driven investors in the US and abroad seeking current income amid near-zero interest rates and negative yields elsewhere in fixed income.

“There is broad agreement that the United States urgently needs to invest in its rapidly aging infrastructure,” Blackstone President Tony James said in the statement. “This will create well-paying American jobs and will lay the foundation for stronger long-term economic growth.”

Schwarzman is a top confidant to Trump from outside the White House.