Morgan Stanley Investment Fund leads US$56m Round for Energy

Morgan Stanley’s 1GT, the bank’s Investment Management arm, announces it led Amber Electric’s Series E financing round. 

Amber Electric is an Australian energy provider which aims to provide the country with more renewable energy solutions by offering customers cheaper rates to charge batteries during greener periods. Its mission is to shift the world onto 100% renewables.

The funding will go towards supporting Amber Electric’s growth, in addition to backing a rising demand for more sustainable energy solutions and the ability to manage those solutions by consumers and power systems at scale. 

The funding for long-term growth  

Amber Electric, founded in 2017, has been backed by investors and accelerators including EnergyLab, Commonwealth Bank, Blackbird, Square Peg and Black Sheep Capital. 

The funding, which totals €49m (US$56.2m), supports Amber Electric’s continued growth, as well as expansion into Europe. 

The energy retailer currently owns a market share of over 50% for automated batteries, and serves as Australia’s largest battery automation supplier. 

E.ON, one of the largest energy providers in the UK, also participated in the latest round, which comes after it announced a partnership with Amber Electric in 2024. 

Chris Thompson, Co-Founder of Amber Electric says: “As energy systems become increasingly decentralised, we see a significant opportunity to help utilities unlock the flexibility of distributed energy resources at scale, while helping more households get greater value from the energy assets they already own. 

“We are confident 1GT is the right partner to help us accelerate our expansion across Europe and bring the benefits of energy flexibility to more households and utility partners.” 

Morgan Stanley’s 1GT 

In addition to capital, Amber Electric will also be provided with deep expertise about the energy sector’s transition ecosystem. 

1GT is managed by Morgan Stanley Climate Private Equity, which the bank describes as a strategy that invests in companies “delivering innovative climate solutions” that “meaningfully decarbonise the global economy”. 

Vikram Raju, Head of Climate Private Equity Investing at Morgan Stanley Investment Management and 1GT, comments on the partnership with Amber Electric, saying: “"We believe Amber will play a consequential role in enabling the energy transition in Australia, Europe and beyond. As power systems become increasingly decentralised, energy flexibility and household-level engagement are essential to integrating renewable energy at scale. 

“The combination of Amber’s differentiated technology, strong customer value proposition and relentless focus on innovation and excellence has set the Company on a compelling growth journey. 

“We are very much looking forward to bringing Morgan Stanley’s distinctive global capabilities to this partnership with Chris and Dan as they build critical infrastructure for a more flexible, resilient and decarbonised electricity system.”

“The combination of Amber’s differentiated technology, strong customer value proposition and relentless focus on innovation and excellence has set the Company on a compelling growth journey. 

“We are very much looking forward to bringing Morgan Stanley’s distinctive global capabilities to this partnership with Chris and Dan as they build critical infrastructure for a more flexible, resilient and decarbonised electricity system.”

Amber Electric partners: 

E.ON: Under CEO Chris Norbury, E.ON Next partnered with Australian platform Amber to introduce dynamic, real-time electricity pricing to UK consumers. The collaboration allows household battery and electric vehicle owners to optimise energy consumption by charging during low-cost grid windows and exporting surplus electricity back when market prices peak, turning domestic assets into profitable green power sources. E.ON is based in Coventry, UK.

​​​​​​​Morgan Stanley: Headquartered in New York City and led by CEO Ted Pick, Morgan Stanley Investment Management partnered with Amber by leading a €49 million Series E funding round through its 1GT private climate equity strategy. The strategic investment aims to accelerate Amber’s global expansion across European energy markets.

Commonwealth Bank: Headquartered in Sydney, Austalia and led by CEO Matt Comyn, Commonwealth Bank partnered with Amber by taking a strategic 25% stake through a $20 million Series B investment round. The partnership offers discounted Amber subscriptions to CommBank customers alongside tailored, low-cost green loans, enabling households to affordably acquire smart energy hardware like solar batteries and EV chargers to optimize renewable grid usage.

EnergyLab: Through its clean-technology startup accelerator programme, Sydney-based EnergyLab, led by CEO Megan Fisher, partnered with Amber to deliver strategic networking, expert guidance and seed-stage assistance. This foundational support allowed Amber to hone its wholesale-pricing model, evolving from a startup accelerator alumnus into a flagship Australian climate-tech success story that manages major virtual power plants.

Blackbird: Headquartered in Sydney, Australia and led by Co-Founders Rick Baker and Niki Scevak, venture capital firm Blackbird partnered with Amber as an early institutional investor, continually supporting its funding rounds. Through initial venture capital backing, Blackbird helped fund Amber's growth from an Australian energy retailer offering direct wholesale electricity rates into an international smart-automation platform for home batteries and electric vehicles.