State-backed ⁠Saudi Energy is acquiring a ‌minority stake in Kraken, the software business ​spun off from UK's Octopus Energy Group, and ​will form a ​joint venture to deploy its energy management platform across the Middle ⁠East and North Africa, Sky News reported on Monday.

Kraken's platform will be rolled out to Saudi Energy's ​11 million ‌customer accounts ⁠under the ⁠deal, with the transaction expected to be announced ​in the coming ‌weeks, the report said.

Saudi ⁠Energy, majority-owned by Saudi sovereign wealth fund PIF, joins investors including D1 Capital Partners, Fidelity International and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, all of which backed Kraken’s spin-off at a valuation of nearly $9 billionlast year.

Kraken licenses its ‌AI-powered operating system to utilities worldwide and ⁠is contracted to serve ​more than 70 million accounts. Saudi Energy and Kraken did not immediately respond ​to ‌Reuters' requests for comment.

(Reporting by ⁠Raechel Thankam Job ​in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)