Ambition. Speed. Execution.

Building American Industry.

We build companies advancing the next generation of American industrial productivity.

See how we work Let's talk

Where are you starting from?

Incubation

Build from the beginning.

We help turn ideas into industry leaders, putting the team, the capital and the first customers in place together.

Experience: Alpine Energy, Lobo Logistics, LuxTronic

Build with us

Private equity

Own an established industrial business and planning what's next?

Partner with a private capital firm aligned with your goals and driven to meet your objectives in your next chapter.

Experience (on both sides of the table): RockPile Energy Services, Marianna Industries

Talk next steps

Venture

Building something new and need more than a check?

We support relentless founders pursuing meaningful innovation with capital and hands-on operating help.

Experience: 29 South is an active early-stage investor and an LP in select venture funds.

Pitch us

Entrepreneurs at heart.

We're driven entrepreneurs who partner with like-minded people across energy, manufacturing and industrial technology, and increasingly defense, to build companies that win.

We aim high. We move fast. We know what it takes to succeed. And we love the people who work in these spaces.

Energy: Every rise in living standards runs on more energy. We back better ways to produce, move and use it.
Manufacturing: Building companies that make things. We back American producers, unlock value on the plant floor, and drive growth for the benefit of the industrial communities that built the Western world.
Industrial technology: We've spent our careers on job sites and plant floors asking one question: how could this run better? That's why advancing industrial technology is in our DNA. Now AI is making those efforts compound, and we're leading the way in Physical AI: AI that can see and act in the real world.

What building with us looks like.

Each of these companies started with a hard problem, a few great people, and an idea on how to do things better. We built them side by side and our partnership continues today.

$Aerial view of a frac site at night, with sand silos, a blender line and rows of pump trucks$

Incubation

Alpine Energy

Where it started: A founding team out of RockPile Energy Services and a plan to run frac fleets on cleaner, lower-cost fuel.
What we did: 29 South founded the company, assembled the leadership team and built a leader in natural gas-powered frac.
Where it is now: An emerging leader in the hydraulic fracturing services industry.

Visit alpinenrg.com →

Private equity

RockPile Energy Services

Members of the 29 South team founded and led RockPile. In five years it became a leading provider of U.S. onshore completion services, and as a White Deer Energy portfolio company it was acquired by Keane Group, now part of Patterson-UTI, in 2017.

Incubation and venture

LuxTronic

29 South incubated LuxTronic, built the team and closed its first customer sale. Today it works with multiple Fortune 500 companies and is a recognized leader in Physical AI for industry.

Visit luxtronic.ai →

Bring us what you're building

Our team.

James C. Evans

Founder and Managing Partner

James has led 29 South's investment and incubation activities since founding the firm in 2017. Before 29 South, he was co-founder, President and CFO of RockPile Energy Services. Before RockPile, he was an investor at a leading middle-market private equity firm, where he led control investments in founder-owned manufacturing and services businesses. He began his career in finance in General Electric's industrial businesses, and he is a graduate of Wake Forest University and the Wharton School.

Todd H. Phillips

General Counsel

Todd oversees legal for 29 South and its portfolio companies, from corporate governance and strategic transactions to compliance and risk management. He brings nearly two decades of experience in complex litigation and corporate law, most recently at Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd and earlier at Hunton & Williams and Cooper & Kirk in Washington, D.C. He holds a JD from George Mason University and a BA from Wake Forest University, and is admitted in California and Virginia.

Jonathan Scheiner

Principal

Jonathan works across 29 South's investment and portfolio activities. He has served as CFO of several venture-backed technology companies, including an AI platform for the energy industry, and co-founded a software company acquired in 2024. Earlier, he was a founding member of Solaris, now Solaris Energy Infrastructure, through its 2017 IPO, an investor at Denham Capital and an energy investment banker at Merrill Lynch. He is a graduate of the University of Miami, where he ran Division I track and cross country.

Curt Dacar

Board Partner

Curt co-founded Alpine Energy and chairs its board. He was co-founder and CEO of RockPile Energy Services, leading it from launch through its sale to Keane Group. Before RockPile, he spent 32 years at Schlumberger, rising to VP of Sales and Marketing for the Western United States. He holds a BS from Regis University and an MS from Heriot-Watt University.

The Road to Something Better.

Before there was a Route 29, there was the Carolina Road. It ran south through the Virginia Piedmont toward the Carolina backcountry, and for generations of early Americans, it was the difficult path people traveled looking for something better.

At 29S, we are passionate about building a better future. Now, as then, the path to progress takes resilience. We partner with ambitious teams and work alongside them through the challenges of building.

Let's build what comes next.

Working on the future of industry?

Connect with 29 South Call 720.704.4023

29 South 6025 S Quebec St, Suite 280 Centennial, CO 80111 info@29southco.com