On March 20, 2026, Ecolab — the St. Paul, Minnesota-based global leader in water treatment, hygiene, and infection prevention — announced it had agreed to acquire CoolIT Systems from KKR and Mubadala Investment Company for approximately $4.75 billion in cash. The transaction, expected to close in Q3 2026, values CoolIT at 29 times its next twelve-month adjusted EBITDA — the highest multiple ever paid for a liquid cooling technology company and one of the largest acquisitions in the data centre thermal management market.

Ecolab is not an HVAC company. It is a water and chemical management company best known for its food safety, hospitality, and industrial cleaning products. The CoolIT acquisition is its entry into data centre liquid cooling — a deliberate, large-scale bet that the convergence of water management expertise and AI infrastructure cooling demand creates a strategic opportunity worth $4.75 billion of capital.

Who Is CoolIT Systems?

CoolIT Systems is a Calgary, Alberta-based liquid cooling specialist with a 25-year history in data centre thermal management. The company designs and manufactures coolant distribution units (CDUs), cold plates, and direct-to-chip cooling systems that remove heat directly from processors — the technology required for the AI GPU clusters that generate 30 to 100 kilowatts per rack, far beyond what conventional air cooling can manage economically.

Under KKR's ownership from 2023 to 2026, CoolIT transformed from a respected specialist into a high-growth platform:

• Manufacturing footprint expanded to more than 300,000 square feet

• Coolant distribution unit production capacity increased 25 times

• Workforce doubled, adding more than 300 jobs

• Revenue tracking toward fourfold growth through 2026 versus 2023 levels

• EBITDA tracking toward tenfold growth through 2026

• Technology deployed in more than 300 data centres serving hyperscale operators

Ecolab agreed on March 20, 2026 to acquire CoolIT Systems from KKR and Mubadala for approximately $4.75 billion — 29 times next-twelve-month EBITDA — adding a 25-year liquid cooling pioneer with technology deployed in more than 300 hyperscale data centres to Ecolab's water and fluid management platform.

Why 29x EBITDA — The Valuation Explained

Twenty-nine times EBITDA is a technology-company multiple applied to a manufacturing and services business. Understanding why Ecolab paid this premium requires understanding what CoolIT represents in the context of Ecolab's growth strategy:

• Revenue growth trajectory: CoolIT's projected fourfold revenue growth through 2026 — from approximately $140 million toward $550 million — means the 29x next-twelve-month multiple translates to a much lower multiple on 2027 and 2028 revenue. Ecolab is paying for the trajectory, not just the current earnings.

• Strategic portfolio fit: Ecolab's core expertise is managing water and chemical systems in complex industrial environments — exactly what data centre liquid cooling requires. CDUs, cold plates, and immersion systems all involve the fluid management, chemical treatment, and system monitoring that Ecolab has been building expertise in for a century.

• Market growth rate: The global data centre cooling market is projected to grow at 17 percent annually. At that growth rate, a 29x current EBITDA multiple implies a much more modest multiple on 2028 or 2029 earnings — making the premium more defensible on a forward-looking basis than it appears on a trailing basis.

• Cooling-as-a-service: Ecolab is positioning itself to offer an end-to-end fluid management and cooling service — combining CoolIT's equipment technology with Ecolab's service delivery infrastructure and chemical expertise. The service model generates recurring revenue at higher margins than equipment sales alone.

KKR's 15x Return in Two Years — A PE Exit Story

The CoolIT transaction is also a remarkable private equity exit story. KKR invested in CoolIT in 2023 through its Global Impact Fund II. The $4.75 billion sale to Ecolab in 2026 generated approximately 15 times the original equity invested — in just two years of ownership. Kyle Matter, KKR's managing director and head of North America Global Impact, described it as 'exactly the type of opportunity we seek in our Global Impact strategy.'

The 15x return in two years is one of the fastest and largest equity returns in technology infrastructure investing in recent memory. It validates the early thesis that KKR brought to the CoolIT investment: that AI compute demand would create explosive growth in liquid cooling demand, and that an early, well-managed position in the leading liquid cooling company would generate extraordinary returns.

For the HVAC and cooling industry, the KKR-CoolIT return is the most striking illustration yet of how investors are valuing the data centre cooling opportunity. When institutional capital generates 15x in 24 months from a cooling technology company, it signals the kind of demand and growth that reshapes entire industries.

What Ecolab's Entry Means for the Cooling Market

Ecolab's entry into data centre liquid cooling through CoolIT creates a new competitor that did not exist in this space 18 months ago — and the competitor is not a startup. It is a publicly traded company with $15 billion in annual revenue, global operations, deep water and chemical management expertise, and a service delivery infrastructure built over a century.

For HVAC companies competing in data centre cooling — Trane (which acquired LiquidStack), Schneider Electric (which acquired Motivair), and Vertiv — Ecolab's entry creates a formidable new participant with resources that match or exceed the largest HVAC OEMs. The cooling-as-a-service positioning Ecolab is building could differentiate its offering in a way that pure equipment providers cannot easily replicate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did Ecolab buy CoolIT Systems?

Ecolab acquired CoolIT to enter data centre liquid cooling — combining CoolIT's 25-year technology expertise and hyperscale customer relationships with Ecolab's century of water and fluid management experience. The acquisition positions Ecolab as a comprehensive cooling solutions provider, advancing its capabilities in the rapidly growing AI data centre market.

How much did Ecolab pay for CoolIT Systems?

Ecolab agreed to pay approximately $4.75 billion in cash — 29 times CoolIT's next-twelve-month EBITDA and 24 times estimated 2027 adjusted EBITDA. The transaction, acquired from KKR and Mubadala, is expected to close in Q3 2026.

What return did KKR make on CoolIT?

KKR invested in CoolIT through its Global Impact Fund II in 2023 and sold to Ecolab in March 2026 for $4.75 billion — generating approximately 15 times the original equity invested in approximately two years of ownership.

What does the Ecolab CoolIT deal mean for HVAC?

Ecolab's $4.75 billion entry into data centre liquid cooling signals that the market is attracting institutional capital beyond traditional HVAC boundaries. Ecolab's water management expertise combined with CoolIT's liquid cooling technology creates a new competitive force alongside HVAC incumbents Trane, Schneider Electric, and Vertiv.