东京——日本私募股权公司优势伙伴（Advantage Partners）正考虑推出一只基础设施基金，作为西方巨头之外的日本本土替代选择，并借此把握日本对此类基金日益增长的需求。
TOKYO -- Japanese private equity firm Advantage Partners is considering launching an infrastructure fund as a homegrown alternative to Western giants and to tap into growing demand for such funds in Japan.
潜在投资领域之一是水务基础设施，目前该领域在日本由地方政府主导。工业用水方面正涌现新的机会：半导体制造商对用于晶圆清洗的超纯水需求不断增长，氢能生产商也需要超纯水用于电解。
One potential area of investment would be water infrastructure, currently dominated by local authorities in Japan. New opportunities are emerging in industrial water, with demand for ultrapure water growing from semiconductor makers for wafer cleaning and from hydrogen producers who need it for electrolysis.
此举正值全球玩家扩大在日本的存在之际。加拿大投资巨头布鲁克菲尔德计划未来几年在日本投资100亿美元，而I Squared Capital刚刚开设了东京办事处，投资能源和数字基础设施。
The move comes as global players expand their presence in Japan. Canadian investment giant Brookfield aims to invest $10 billion in Japan over the next few years, while I Squared Capital has just opened a Tokyo office to invest in energy and digital infrastructure.
优势伙伴联合创始人兼代表合伙人笹沼泰助表示：“运营基础设施所需的技术专业水平已大幅提高。”“运营诀窍需要不断更新，同时项目也必须在经济上可行。”
"The level of technical expertise required to operate infrastructure has risen tremendously," said Taisuke Sasanuma, a co-founder and representative partner of Advantage Partners. "Operating know-how needs to be constantly updated, while projects also need to be economically viable."
他说：“传统上，地方政府和政府机构在基础设施运营中扮演核心角色，但私营部门补充其能力的空间正在不断扩大。”优势伙伴管理着1.1万亿日元（70亿美元）资产，其中包括其在日本收购业务中的7200亿日元。该公司与租赁公司东京世纪的合作预计将为其基础设施业务提供支持。东京世纪是优势伙伴的33%股东，同时也是可再生能源开发商。东京世纪在为这家总部位于东京的私募股权公司寻找交易、联合投资以及对被收购公司提供管理支持方面提供了帮助。
"Local governments and government agencies have traditionally played a central role in operating infrastructure," he said, "but there is growing room for the private sector to complement their capabilities." Advantage Partners manages 1.1 trillion yen ($7 billion) in assets, including 720 billion yen in its buyout business in Japan. Its partnership with leasing company Tokyo Century, a 33% shareholder and renewable energy developer, is expected to support its infrastructure push. Tokyo Century has helped the Tokyo-based private equity firm with deal sourcing, joint investments and management support for acquired companies.
该愿景仍处于开发阶段，可能会创建一个约10亿美元的初始基金。基金规模往往会随着后续募资而增加。该公司可再生能源与可持续发展业务负责人铃木圭一设想，将Advantage Partners打造成一个平台，能够改变日本基础设施项目的融资方式——这一角色在未来十年可能需要高达100亿美元的管理资产规模。
The vision, still in the development stage, could see the creation of an initial fund of about $1 billion. Fund sizes tend to increase with successive offerings. Keiichi Suzuki, the company's head of renewables and sustainability, envisions building Advantage Partners into a platform capable of transforming how infrastructure projects are financed in Japan -- a role that could require as much as $10 billion in assets under management over the next decade.
Advantage Partners可再生能源与可持续发展业务负责人铃木圭一设想，将该公司打造成基础设施开发领域的关键参与者。
Keiichi Suzuki, head of Advantage Partners' renewables and sustainability, envisions the firm becoming a key player in infrastructure development.
在海外，私募投资机构已在基础设施的开发和运营中发挥重要作用。
Overseas, private investment firms already play a major role in developing and operating infrastructure.
丹麦的哥本哈根基础设施合作伙伴开发了美国首个商业规模的海上风电场。它还投资了越南的一个海上风电项目，这是东南亚规划中同类最大的项目之一。
Denmark's Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners developed the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in the United States. It has also invested in an offshore wind project in Vietnam, one of the largest planned projects of its kind in Southeast Asia.
作为全球最大的基础设施投资者之一，以及水电资产的拥有者和运营商，布鲁克菲尔德扭转了濒临破产的西屋电气，将其转型为一家轻资产的核技术公司。
Brookfield, one of the world's largest infrastructure investors and owners and operators of hydroelectric assets, has turned around bankrupt Westinghouse Electric, transforming it into an asset-light nuclear technology company.
另一个例子是伦敦盖特威克机场，由法国工程建筑集团 Vinci 拥有，并由全球基础设施合作伙伴管理的基金持有，后者现已成为贝莱德的一部分。日本也有越来越多的私营机场，包括由 Vinci 和欧力士合资企业运营的关西机场，以及由东急牵头的财团运营的仙台机场。
Another example is London Gatwick Airport, which is owned by French engineering and construction group Vinci with funds managed by Global Infrastructure Partners, now part of BlackRock. Japan, too, has a growing number of privately operated airports, including Kansai, operated by a Vinci-Orix joint venture, and Sendai, run by a Tokyu-led consortium.
在全球范围内，受较高借贷成本、地缘政治不确定性以及对流向数据中心等领域的巨额资金日益严格的审查影响，基础设施募资在短期内面临放缓。市场数据提供商 Infrastructure Investor 称，2026年前九个月，私募基础设施基金募集了996亿美元，较上年同期下降46%。
Globally, infrastructure fundraising is facing a near-term slowdown amid higher borrowing costs, geopolitical uncertainty and growing scrutiny of the huge sums flowing into areas such as data centers. Private infrastructure funds raised $99.6 billion in the first nine months of 2026, down 46% from a year earlier, according to Infrastructure Investor, a market data provider.
但这家数据提供商也指出，机构投资者的长期兴趣依然存在。日本营收和资产规模最大的两家寿险公司——日本生命保险和第一生命保险——本月均表示，计划在10月至次年3月的财年下半年增加对基础设施基金的配置。
But the data provider also points to continued long-term appetite among institutional investors. Nippon Life and Daiichi Life Insurance -- Japan's two largest life insurers by revenue and assets -- both said this month that they plan to increase their allocations to infrastructure funds in the October-March fiscal second half.
日本生命保险投资企划负责人石田大辅表示：“我们希望在日本增加投资，但西方市场提供更大、更多元的机会。”他补充说，对寿险公司而言，基础设施基金具有吸引力，因为它们通常提供随通胀上升的稳定收益。
"We want to invest more in Japan, but Western markets offer a larger and more diverse range of opportunities," said Daisuke Ishida, Nippon Life's head of investment planning. For life insurers, infrastructure funds are appealing because they typically provide steady income that rises with inflation, he added.
对Advantage Partners而言，可持续性是许多收购股权交易中的潜在主题。
For Advantage Partners, sustainability is an underlying theme in many of its buyout equity deals.
一个典型例子是该公司2025年对古河电池的收购。Advantage Partners将这家拥有76年历史的电池制造商与其2021年从现为日本化学品制造商Resonac的公司收购的另一项电池业务整合到EneSolve旗下，按市场份额计算，打造出日本第二大铅酸电池集团，仅次于GS Yuasa。
A case in point is its 2025 buyout of Furukawa Battery. Advantage Partners has brought together the 76-year-old battery maker and another battery business it acquired in 2021 from what is now Resonac, a Japanese chemical maker, under EneSolve, to create Japan's second largest lead-acid battery group by market share, after GS Yuasa.
铅酸电池通常用于启动汽车发动机和为车载配件供电。最近，它们还被用于为数据中心和电信基站提供备用电源，以及作为电网的缓冲。
Lead-acid batteries are typically used to start automobile engines and power onboard accessories. More recently, they have also been used to provide backup power for data centers and telecom base stations, as well as a buffer for power grids.
Advantage Partners日本收购业务负责人北真一郎表示，EneSolve正致力于开发新能源服务，目标是在几年内进行首次公开募股。
Shinichiro Kita, head of Japan buyouts at Advantage Partners, says EneSolve is working to develop new energy services, with an initial public offering targeted in a few years.
Advantage Partners日本收购业务负责人、前贝恩公司顾问北真一郎表示，日本制造业是他公司的一个重点。
Shinichiro Kita, head of Japan buyouts at Advantage Partners and a former Bain & Co. consultant, says Japan's manufacturing industry is a key focus for his company.
另一项与可持续主题相关的收购涉及大丰工业，这是一家总部位于大阪的塑料成型公司，为松下、大金工业和铃木汽车供货。其塑料产品包括汽车保险杠和内饰、空调管道和软管，以及浴室盥洗台。
Another buyout linked to the sustainability theme involves Daiho Industrial, an Osaka-based plastic molding company and supplier to Panasonic, Daikin Industries and Suzuki Motor. Its plastics products include automotive bumpers and interiors, air-conditioning ducts and hoses, and bathroom vanities.
大保的新产品之一是一种天然、植物基、类似塑料的材料，主要由纸浆和淀粉制成，可用于注塑成型产品。这种材料是可生物降解的。喜多认为，当大保最终上市时，此类环保举措可能有助于吸引投资者。
One of Daiho's new products is a natural, plant-based, plastic-like material made mainly from pulp and starch that can be used in injection-molded products. The material is biodegradable. Kita believes such environmental initiatives could help attract investors when Daiho eventually goes public.
制造业约占Advantage Partners在日本收购投资的三分之一。其他领域包括零售和餐饮等消费类业务，以及人力派遣等服务。
Manufacturing accounts for about a third of Advantage Partners' buyout investments in Japan. Other sectors include consumer businesses such as retail and restaurants, as well as services such as staffing.
“我相信，我们经手的制造业交易比日本任何其他基金都多，”喜多说。“我们将继续投资制造业。这是一个日本具有竞争优势的领域，也是通过行业整合和全球营销创造价值有空间的领域。”
"I believe we have handled more manufacturing deals than any other fund in Japan, " Kita said. "We will continue to invest in manufacturing. It is a sector where Japan has a competitive edge and where there is room to create value through industry consolidation and global marketing."