Energy, infrastructure and finance beyond the headlines.

6 November 2026Venture

Heat Is the New Constraint in Orbit: Who Will Build the Radiators of the Space Economy

Heat is a hard limit in orbit: in a vacuum, a spacecraft can shed heat only by radiating it. The International Space Station’s main cooling system needs about 475 square metres and almost 7 tonnes of radiators to reject 70 kW; at that performance, one megawatt would take about 6,800 square metres and nearly 100 tonnes, some $145 million just to launch. Demand is rising on two fronts: there are more satellites, each using more power, and on top come on-board computing and the first orbital data centres. Capital is not following the constraint: the four thermal start-ups profiled have disclosed about $25 million between them, against $420 million raised by Starcloud in 2026 alone. Deployable radiators, adaptive coatings and parts of active cooling loops are the segments most open to newcomers, while heat pipes are protected by qualification barriers and heat pumps still have no commercial entrant. Exits run through M&A, and the largest values sit with players that reached markets beyond space. The main risks are that orbital data centres remain hype, that qualification cycles delay revenue, that customers are few and concentrated, and that primes build thermal systems in-house.

Tommaso Castelli Rivolta, Chris Vittorio Joannes Agnelli, Ahmet Selim Birışık, Haya Kret, Riccardo Maggioni

Reviewed by Riccardo Gilli, Gregorio Pesente · Approved by Riccardo Gilli, Head of Venture

5 November 2026Infrastructure & Transport Logistics

SAC: acquiring a 51% stake in Sicily’s airport platform

This independent report evaluates SAC’s Catania and Comiso airports as a potential investment for infrastructure private equity funds and institutional investors, placing the opportunity within the broader context of institutional ownership and consolidation in Italy’s airport sector. The analysis weighs Catania’s gateway position and commercial growth potential against Comiso’s losses, finite concession rights and the funding and capital-recovery requirements of Catania’s approximately €1.3bn development program. A finite-concession DCF estimates enterprise value at €173.23m and the value of a 51% equity interest at €97.46m. Complementary returns analysis, based on a separate €100.62m entry-price assumption, generates a modeled ten-year IRR of 7.97% with no interim dividends, below an illustrative 10% hurdle. These findings frame SAC as a conditional Core+ opportunity whose investment viability depends on disciplined entry pricing, verified tariff recovery and committed development financing.

Leonardo Gatti, Vittorio De March, Ana Carolina Nacif, Francesco Motta, Vittorio Pisa, Shreya Prakash

4 November 2026Energy

Financing Battery Energy Storage: Revenue Models, Risk Allocation and Bankability

The growing penetration of variable renewable energy sources is increasing the need for flexibility in electricity systems. Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) address this need by storing electricity and adjusting their output according to market conditions and grid requirements. However, their development raises a fundamental financial question: how can projects attract long-term financing despite uncertainty surrounding revenues and operational performance? This publication examines the main revenue models, the associated risks and the mechanisms available to improve bankability, using institutional data, commercial agreements and financing transactions, with a section dedicated to the Italian market.

Antonio Puliafito, Marco Frizzele, Matteo Mascaretti, Simone Zordan, Gaetano Pinho, Alfonso Santojanni

12 October 2026Energy

Energy: Initial Statement

The energy system has to remain reliable and affordable while its composition changes, and the capital that will change it has to be committed before the outcome is known. This statement sets out how the Energy division will study that problem: its analytical approach, the five areas it will research, its work with the other BSEIF divisions and with the Bocconi community, and the standards it commits to. Figures are as of 12 October 2026.

Antonio Puliafito

14 October 2026Venture

Venture: Initial Statement

The energy transition and the infrastructure build-out increasingly depend on hardware: components, materials and systems that take years and large sums to bring to market. Venture capital is one of the channels that fund this work at its earliest stage, and it faces two bottlenecks of its own, physical supply chains and capital, as well as a long road to exit, with policy and the pursuit of technological sovereignty shaping all three. This statement sets out that context, the areas the Venture division will cover, how it works with the other BSEIF divisions and with the Bocconi community, and the standards it commits to. Figures are as of 14 October 2026.

Riccardo Gilli

13 October 2026Infrastructure & Transport Logistics

Infrastructure & Transport Logistics: Initial Statement

Transport infrastructure has to be judged twice: by the service it provides and by the cash flows its owners can expect, and the two do not always coincide. This statement sets out that context, with figures as of 9 October 2026, the three tests the division applies to every asset (network, ownership and capital, with regulation shaping all three), the five areas the Infrastructure & Transport Logistics division will cover, and what the division commits to.

Leonardo Gatti

10 October 2026Digital Infrastructure

Digital Infrastructure: Initial Statement

AI adoption now depends less on research and more on three bottlenecks: compute, energy and capital, with regulation shaping all three. This statement sets out that context, with figures as of 9 October 2026, the five areas the Digital Infrastructure division will cover, and what the division commits to.

Lorenzo Barbagelata