Mumbai: Emerging-markets energy operator Incubit Group plans to deploy about Rs 5,000 crore in India over the next four to five years as it expands beyond its existing investments in the country and builds a broader energy business.The privately held group, which operates across Africa, the Middle East and India, has anchored its India strategy with about a 14% stake in listed lubricants maker GP Petroleums Ltd and a majority interest in the Pipavav liquid storage terminal in Gujarat.Also Read: Allcargo Logistics scales up its blue-collar workforce to cater to festive demandIncubit, backed by institutional investors based in Singapore and the Middle East, said India is central to its long-term strategy. The group said its investment approach differs from that of private equity funds, as it does not operate with a fixed exit horizon."Incubit follows a model that has capital, strategy and standards at its core, while we empower the professionals to run each of our businesses with their expertise. We are a long-term, strategic operational investor, not a fund with a fixed exit horizon,” said Harshvardhan Sinha, founder and managing partner of Incubit. “Everyone assumes the energy transition means less oil infrastructure. It means more ethanol blending, biodiesel, and LPG all need tankage, and much of it doesn't exist in the right form,” he added.Also Read: M&A deals more than double as India Inc steps up growth bets: CrisilThe group intends to use its operating experience across emerging markets to identify opportunities in India's energy infrastructure, particularly in segments where it sees capacity constraints.Liquid storage is one of its priorities. Incubit expects demand for tankage to rise with the expansion of ethanol blending, biodiesel and LPG. It is also evaluating opportunities in LPG imports, storage and bottling, as well as in what it calls "circular molecule" businesses, including used-oil re-refining, biofuels and compressed biogas.In the lubricants business, the group is pursuing greater integration of formulation, procurement and technical standards, with a focus on speciality products that have original-equipment manufacturer approvals.Sinha said the company seeks to act as a strategic shareholder rather than take direct operational control of its portfolio companies."The Incubit group characterises its role as a strategic shareholder backing a leadership team and further enhancing it with top professionals, rather than operational control,” said Sinha. “In the case of GP Petroleums, following the acquisition of a 14% stake, we helped GP Petroleums bring in one of the industry leaders in the energy space, Dilip Vaswani, ex-chairman & managing director, Total South Asia, as senior management personnel at GP Petroleums,” he added.The group intends to combine long-term capital and energy-sector operating experience across four geographies, focusing on India's mid- and small-cap energy businesses, which will underpin its expansion in the country.