Addressing Private Market Climate Risks in Maryland’s Retirement System

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Maryland SRPS makes progress on climate, private markets contain risk

Maryland State Retirement and Pension System has done important work over the past few years to identify risks and opportunities in the climate transition, and the mandate of the Climate Advisory Panel – to advise on climate-related investment risks and opportunities – can help the system position itself for a low-carbon economy.

As the 2026 Climate Risk Assessment acknowledged, “With federal guidance dissipating, climate governance is shifting toward state-level governments and institutional investors.”

While asset owners face challenges addressing climate issues across their entire portfolios, the illiquidity and opacity of private markets investments complicate these efforts and may obscure significant risks. For example, modeling by the Oregon Treasurer on progress toward the state pension’s progress toward net zero found that over 80 percent of its portfolio’s apportioned emissions were in private equity and real assets.

Maryland’s state retirement fund has around 41 percent of its $74 billion in assets allocated to private markets, including Real Assets, Private Equity and Absolute Return. On average, public pensions allocate around 31 percent to these alternative asset classes, with around 14 percent of that in private equity. Maryland has 21 percent in private equity, higher than the average.

Private market investments tied to fossil fuels

Maryland SRPS has investments in funds managed by private equity firms that are highlighted in the Private Equity Climate Risks Scorecard and the Global Energy Trackers. These firms own or financially back many energy companies and fossil fuel assets.^[1]

For example, through its investment in Blackrock’s Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) V, MD SRPS has exposure to a few controversial energy assets including the proposed natural liquefied gas (LNG) terminal in South Texas, Rio Grande LNG, which is facing local indigenous and community opposition.

BlackRock’s GIP V also recently acquired the regulated energy utility ALLETE and Minnesota Power, despite a coalition of opposition to the deal, which provided expert testimony and analysis that warned of the risks of the utility being taken into the private market by BlackRock, such as the potential for increased utility rates, less transparency, and uncertainty around the future of clean energy goals.

In March of 2026, BlackRock’s GIP V, alongside EQT, California Public Employees’ Retirement System, and the Qatar Investment Authority has announced a $10.7 billion bid to acquire AES Corporation—one of the largest utility companies, which operates utilities in Indiana, Ohio, and El Salvador, and operates and/or owes at least 26 fossil fuel power plants in Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Chile, Panama, US, Argentina, Mexico, Vietnam, Jordan, and Bulgaria. The AES power plant portfolio includes seven coal power plants, two pet coke-fired power plants, seven gas/diesel power plants, and ten gas power plants.

Global fossil fuel exposure

Private market managers own fossil fuel assets across the globe with environmental, health and financial impacts. The below map illustrates private equity backed fossil fuel assets Maryland SRPS may have exposure to through its commitments to the managers.

Explore the interactive asset map here.^[2]

Several of Maryland SRPS’s managers continue to have extensive fossil fuel exposure, far outnumbering the renewables companies in which they are invested. The graphic below shows that 36 percent of the energy companies are renewable companies, while 64 percent are fossil fuel companies. A full list of energy companies Maryland SRPS may have exposure to is available in the Appendix. 

Explore the chart here, and the detailed list of energy companies here.

MD SRPS private equity commitments with likely energy exposure since 2017

Recommended policy standards for private market investments

Many of the world’s asset owners are actively working to construct portfolios for climate risk mitigation and transitioning to a low-carbon economy. Given the opacity of private markets, investors are taking different approaches to addressing private market risks, some key policies  are compared here.

The following climate standards are a policy tool for Maryland SRPS to consider, which include concrete timelines to ensure private markets portfolios pivot to adhere to a 1.5 degree pathway and adapt to the energy transition in order to reduce financial risk for funds currently tied to fossil fuel investments.

1. Align private market portfolios with science-based climate targets
2. Disclose fossil fuel exposure, emissions, and impacts
3. Report portfolio-wide energy transition plan
4. Asset managers will integrate climate and environmental justice
5. Asset managers will provide transparency on political spending and climate lobbying

Read the detailed Climate Standards for Private Market Investorshere.

Other Relevant Sources

• 2024 Private Equity Climate Risks Scorecard
• Private Equity Global Energy Trackers
• Private Equity, Public Harm: Tracing the $15 billion health bill of air pollution from select private equity-backed fossil fuel infrastructure in the U.S.
• A Look at Private Equity Transition Funds: Energy Innovation or Greenwashing?
• PESP Climate Standards and Investor Toolkit
• Landmark greenwashing case in France and new lawsuit against Canadian pension fund could be a sign of a new era of accountability
• Quantum Capital fossil fuels linked to $2.4B in health costs

 This document includes analysis of a dataset of private equity ownership of energy companies and assets developed jointly by researchers from Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund, Global Energy Monitor, and Private Equity Stakeholder Project.

APPENDIX

Energy Companies as of January 2026

The following list of companies owned or financially backed by Apollo, Brookfield, GIP, IFM, NGP, Stonepeak, or Quantum – all of which are general partners Maryland SRPS has investments with.

Explore the chart here, and the detailed list of energy companies here.

Fossil Fuel Companies

406 Energy

ADNOC Gas Pipelines

ALLETE

Anew Climate

Antero Resources

AusNet Services

Bison Oil & Gas IV

Blackbeard Operating

BNI Energy

Brookfield Renewable Partners

Buckeye Partners

Caliber Resource Partners

California Bioenergy

Camino Natural Resources

CH4 Energy Six

Cheniere Energy Partners

Clean Energy Fuels (NAS: CLNE)

Clearway Energy (NYS: CWEN.A)

Colonial Pipeline

Columbia Pipeline Group

Confluence Resources

Cove Point Terminal

Crescent Midstream

Cygnet Energy (Duvernay and Montney Assets)

Double Eagle Energy Holdings V

Eagle Creek Renewable Energy

East West Pipeline

Elera Renováveis (fka Brookfield Energia Renovável)

Ember Resources

Energos Infrastructure Management

Ensign Natural Resources

Enwave Energy

Evolve Transition Infrastructure (ASE: SNMP)

FireBird Energy II

FourPoint Energy

Freeport LNG Development

Green Gas

Greenlake Energy II

Hartree Partners

HEQ Deepwater

Hess Midstream Partners (NYS: HESM)

HG Energy

Humble Midstream II

Hydria

Impact Exploration and Production Partners

Impala Terminals

Inter Pipeline

InterEnergy Holdings

Jafurah Midstream Gas Company

Key Access Pipeline System (KAPS)

Koda Resources

Leap Green Energy

Louisiana LNG Infrastructure

Maas Energy Works

Medallion Gathering & Processing

Minnesota Power

Mora Energy

Naturgy Energy Group (MAD: NTGY)

NorthRiver Midstream

Nova Transportadora do Sudeste

Occidental Petroleum (Oil and Gas Properties in Wyoming and Colorado)

Oryx Midstream Services

Outrigger Energy

Pelican Pipeline

Pluto LNG Train 2

QB Energy

Rio Grande LNG

Rockpoint Gas Storage (Formerly Niska Gas Storage Partners)

Saavi Energia

Scotia Gas Networks

Seapeak

Sentinel Peak Resources

South Wind Exploration & Production

Torm (CSE: TRMD A)

Trace Midstream Partners

Trans Anatolian Gas Pipeline Company (TANAP)

Trident Energy Management

Triple Crown Resources

Vedanta Resources

Venture Global LNG

Vickery Energy

VTTI

Western Basin Energy

Western LNG

White Rock Oil and Gas

WRC Energy Holdings

Renewable Energy Companies

547 Energy

AES Andes (693 MW Renewable Energy Portfolio in Chile)

AGP Sustainable Real Assets

ALLETE Clean Energy

Atlas Renewable Energy

Avaada Energy

Bluepoint Wind

BrightNight

Bullrock Energy JV

Cambridge Power Battery Storage JV

Carbon Terravault

CEE Group

Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions

Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind

Deriva Energy

Eolian

Evolugen

Evren (Axis Energy Ventures JV)

GreenPeak Renewables

Isagen

IsagenSol

Ivi Energia

Kingdom Energy Storage (fka Stonepeak-CHC Asia Energy Storage Platform)

Luminace

Nala Renewables

Neoen

OnPath Energy

Origis Energy

Ørsted (Hornsea Projects)

Ørsted (Portfolio of Four Onshore Wind Farms with a Capacity of 957 Megawatts in the United States)

Ørsted’s Hornsea 3

Peak Energy

Repsol U.S. Renewables Portfolio

Scout Clean Energy

Skyborn Renewables

Solarity

SQ Renewables (ERG S.p.A.)

Standard Solar

Stonepeak Island Transition

Summit Ridge Energy

Sunovis

Synera Renewable Energy

TerraForm Global

TerraWind Renewables

Urban Grid

US Wind

Vena Energy

WahajPeak

X-Elio Renewables

Resources

^[1] Private equity firms invest in portfolio companies through various strategies, including leveraged buyouts, majority stake investments, minority stake investments, control or non-control investments, credit or lending investments, joint ventures, via intermediaries or directly, and others. The precise nature of each investment arrangement is often not disclosed, but these investments all provide capital to portfolio companies that enable their operations and the associated emissions and environmental impacts.

^[2] The MD SRPS Private Market Fossil Fuel Assets map does not represent a comprehensive list of assets owned or financially backed by the private equity firms MD SRPS has investment with. The map is a list of selected assets highlighted in the 2024 Private Equity Climate Risks Scorecard and Global Energy Tracker.

^[3]https://www.privateequitywire.co.uk/maryland-pension-scheme-includes-thoma-bravo-apollo-silver-lake-11bn-new/

^[4]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/2024-acfr_final_investment.pdf?1738697641

^[5]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/2024-acfr_final_investment.pdf?1738697641

^[6]https://realassets.ipe.com/news/maryland-srps-grows-infrastructure-exposure-with-350m-commitments/10069043.article

^[7]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/acfr_2025_-_investment_section.pdf?1766518428

^[8]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/acfr_2025_-_investment_section.pdf?1766518428

^[9]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/2024-acfr_final_investment.pdf?1738697641

^[10]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/2024-acfr_final_investment.pdf?1738697641

^[11]https://realassets.ipe.com/news/maryland-srps-grows-infrastructure-exposure-with-350m-commitments/10069043.article

^[12]https://sra.maryland.gov/sites/main/files/file-attachments/acfr_2025; _-_investment_section.pdf?1766518428