Fort Worth-based PE Firm Vortus Adds Luke Brandenberg as Managing Director

Vortus Investment Advisors LLC announced the addition of Luke Brandenberg as a managing director of the Fort Worth, Texas-based private equity firm.

“Luke is well known in the industry for his relationships, strong financial acumen and high level of performance, and we are thrilled to add him to our leadership team,” Jeffrey Miller, managing partner of Vortus, said in a statement in an April 26 release. 

Vortus Investment Advisors focuses on the lower middle market upstream energy industry in North America. The firm targets privately negotiated transactions requiring approximately $25 million to $100 million of equity capital in partnership with successful owner/operators as part its asset-based investment strategy.

“As we continue to grow, our asset-focused investment strategy remains consistent,” Brian Crumley, managing partner of Vortus, added in the statement. “We believe Luke’s deep industry expertise will complement the strengths of our investment team enhancing our ability to maximize the value of existing investments as well as effectively pursue additional partnership opportunities in the domestic onshore upstream industry.”

Brandenberg joins Vortus from Dallas-based private equity firm Grey Rock Energy Partners, which he had partnered with to launch a special situations initiative and to lead the deal origination, structuring and relationship management efforts for the new platform.

At Vortus, Brandenberg will be a key member of the investment team responsible for various stages of the investment cycle including sourcing, structuring, transactional due diligence, monitoring and management, according to the firm’s release.

After starting his career in investment banking at Raymond James & Associates, Brandenberg transitioned to principal investing in 2010 where he has focused on providing growth capital to the independent sector of the U.S. oil and gas industry. 

Previously, Brandenberg also spent 10 years with EnCap Investments LP, where he was the primary relationship manager and a key board member on multiple portfolio companies representing a significant portion of EnCap’s equity commitments.