Gemspring Capital has partnered with Key Line Construction and Palouse Power to combine the two Pacific Northwest contractors into a single utility infrastructure services platform.
Oregon-headquartered Key Line Construction and Washington-headquartered Palouse Power build and maintain the physical equipment that moves electricity from power plants to homes and businesses. Between them they handle construction and maintenance across electric distribution lines, high-voltage transmission, substations and communications infrastructure for investor-owned utilities, federal power agencies, electric cooperatives and public utility districts.
Key Line is one of the few regional contractors able to perform both the electrical work and the civil work — excavation, foundations and site preparation — on a utility project itself, which gives it flexibility on demanding jobs in remote terrain. Palouse works with its utility customers on both planned capital programs and emergency restoration after storms and outages.
The combined company — led by Tank Parrish, chief executive officer of Key Line, and Jeff Zimmer, president of Palouse — employs more than 250 people and serves customers across Oregon, Washington, Idaho, California and Utah.
“Utilities are investing to modernize and expand the grid, and they need contractors who can execute safely, reliably and at scale,” said Mr. Parrish. “Partnering with Gemspring and joining forces with Palouse gives us additional resources, geographic reach, and depth of talent to continue serving our customers, while carrying forward the culture and values that have always defined Key Line.”
“Key Line and Palouse are a natural fit,” said Mr. Zimmer. “Together, we can broaden the services and geographies we offer utility customers and create new opportunities for our people. We are excited to bring our teams together and continue building on the strong momentum both businesses have created.”
The two businesses operate in a corner of the construction industry tied to long-cycle utility spending. Electric utilities across the country are replacing aging poles, wires and substations, extending lines to serve new development, and hardening equipment against wildfires and storms. That work is being compounded by rising electricity demand from the electrification of vehicles and buildings and from the rapid construction of data centers, which is drawing more investment into the transmission and distribution networks that regional contractors such as Key Line and Palouse are hired to build and maintain. The market remains fragmented, with many small, locally focused contractors and few operators able to self-perform work at scale across several states.
Gemspring’s investment reflects a plan to build a larger platform by consolidating contractors in a market supported by long-term utility capital budgets.
“The critical utility infrastructure services market is large, fragmented, and supported by multi-decade secular tailwinds,” said Alex Shakibnia, a managing director at Gemspring. “Tank, Jeff, and their teams have built two outstanding businesses with a shared commitment to safety, quality, and their people. We’re proud to partner with them, and we look forward to supporting the combined team as they grow the platform and continue delivering for the utility customers and communities they serve.”
Gemspring invests in companies with revenues of up to $2 billion that operate in the business services, consumer services, financial and insurance services, healthcare, industrial, software, and tech-enabled services sectors. The firm has completed more than 125 acquisitions across its buyout and growth strategies.
In September 2025, Gemspring closed its second non-control investment vehicle, Gemspring Growth Solutions Fund II LP, with $1.1 billion in limited partner commitments. Gemspring was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Westport, Connecticut, with additional offices in Los Angeles, Charlotte, and Columbus.
Piper Sandler was the financial advisor to Gemspring on this transaction.
Key Line is one of the few regional contractors able to perform both the electrical work and the civil work — excavation, foundations and site preparation — on a utility project itself, which gives it flexibility on demanding jobs in remote terrain. Palouse works with its utility customers on both planned capital programs and emergency restoration after storms and outages.
