What is TPZ? An Energy Solution for Financial Advisors

A New Era of Energy Requires a New Approach

Electrification. AI infrastructure. Data center growth. The energy sector is evolving, and the demands for energy infrastructure are shifting just as rapidly. Yet many ETFs remain anchored to outdated benchmarks—tracking upstream producers or focusing narrowly on oil and gas exposure.

For financial advisors witnessing these market changes, a different kind of solution is required: one that delivers real asset exposure, seeks stable income and the flexibility to adapt. That’s where the Tortoise Electrification Infrastructure ETF (TPZ) stands apart.

TPZ at a Glance: A Multi-Asset Strategy for an Evolving Landscape

TPZ is not a traditional energy ETF—and that’s by design. Launched in its ETF form in late 2024, TPZ was developed by Tortoise Capital to reflect today’s energy realities: essential infrastructure, rising electricity demand and the need for risk-managed income solutions.

Its actively managed portfolio spans multiple asset classes and sectors, including:

  • Electric utilities expanding capacity to support grid modernization
  • Natural gas infrastructure providing scalable, reliable baseload power
  • Nuclear-connected companies tied to the resurgence of zero-carbon energy
  • Covered call strategies designed to enhance yield in various market conditions

This breadth offers more than just diversification—it provides access to the income-generating backbone of the modern energy economy.

Structural Differentiators That Matter

Many energy ETFs take a narrow approach, tracking indexes with limited flexibility, infrequent distributions, and volatile return profiles. TPZ takes a different path.

FeatureTPZPassive Energy ETF
StrategyActivePassive
FocusElectrification + InfrastructureUpstream oil & gas
Asset TypesEquities, bonds, covered call optionsTypically equities only
Income FrequencyMonthlyQuarterly
Tax Form1099 (no K-1)1099 (no K-1)
Active Share80%Varies, often <10%

Key takeaway: TPZ blends the dependability of essential infrastructure with the agility of active management, without the administrative friction of legacy energy structures.

Why Advisors Choose TPZ

TPZ is built for advisors seeking strategic flexibility, income consistency, and tax efficiency, especially in environments where volatility and client sensitivity are high.

TPZ is designed for:

  • Registered investment advisors (RIAs) focused on reliable income potential and simplicity
  • Model builders looking for differentiated energy allocations
  • Wealth managers aiming to reduce equity beta and tax drag

Tax-Efficient Income—Without Complexity

For advisors managing tax-sensitive portfolios, structure matters as much as strategy. TPZ is built with this in mind:

  • 1099 tax reporting—no K-1s, no surprises
  • Designed to minimize capital gains distributions via the ETF’s in-kind transfer mechanism
  • Expense ratio of 0.85%, competitive for a multi-asset active strategy

Advisors avoid tax friction. Clients avoid complexity.

Is TPZ the Right Fit for Your Clients?

In a world where energy markets are evolving, TPZ delivers more than exposure—it offers a strategic solution. Whether you’re looking to anchor an infrastructure allocation, enhance after-tax yield, or provide clients with consistent income from real assets, TPZ may offer the right blend of innovation and reliability.

In client portfolios, TPZ may serve as:

  • A core infrastructure sleeve with regulated, real-asset exposure
  • A differentiated source of monthly income potential in a multi-asset income model
  • A lower-volatility way to gain electrification exposure—without chasing speculative themes
Close-up view of large metal pipelines running outdoors, with an industrial facility and tall structures blurred in the background at sunset.

Important Information

Beta is the covariance of manager and benchmark divided by the variance of the benchmark. Beta is a measure of systematic risk, or the sensitivity of a manager to movements in the benchmark. A beta of 1 implies that you can expect the movement of a manager’s return series to match that of the benchmark used to measure beta.

Nothing in this article should be considered a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell any shares of the portfolio in any jurisdiction where the offer or solicitation would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. Nothing contained in this communication constitutes tax, legal or investment advice. Investors must consult their tax advisor or legal counsel for advice and information concerning their particular situation.

Tortoise Capital Advisors, LLC (TCA) is the advisor to the Tortoise Electrification Infrastructure ETF.

The S&P 500® Index is an unmanaged, market-value weighted index of stocks that is widely regarded as the standard for measuring large-cap U.S. stock market performance. The S&P 500® Energy Index comprises those companies included in the S&P 500 that are classified as members of the GICS® energy sector. A master limited partnership (MLP) is a limited partnership investment vehicle that is traded on public exchanges. MLPs are traded in units rather than shares and consist of a general partner and limited partners. There are certain tax advantages as well as opportunity for more liquidity.

Before investing in the funds, investors should consider their investment goals, time horizons and risk tolerance. The funds’ investment objective, risks, charges and expenses must be considered carefully before investing. The statutory prospectuses and the summary prospectuses (click here) contain this and other important information about the funds. Copies of the funds’ prospectus may be obtained by calling 855-994-4437 or by emailing info@tortoisecapital.com. Read it carefully before investing.

The fund’s strategy of concentrating its assets in the power and energy infrastructure industries means that the performance of the fund will be closely tied to the performance of these particular market sectors.

Widespread disease, including pandemics and epidemics, have been and can be highly disruptive to economies and markets, adversely impacting individual companies, sectors, industries, markets, currencies, interest and inflation rates, credit ratings, investor sentiment, and other factors affecting the value of the fund’s investments. Investment advisers, including the Adviser, must rely in part on digital and network technologies (collectively “cyber networks”) to conduct their businesses.

Covered Call Option Risk: We cannot guarantee that our covered call option strategy will be effective. The use of options also may require us to sell portfolio securities at inopportune times or for prices other than current market values, may limit the amount of appreciation we can realize on an investment, or may cause us to hold a security we might otherwise sell.

Shares of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are not individually redeemable and owners of the shares may acquire those shares from the ETF and tender those shares for redemption to the ETF in Creation Units only, see the ETF prospectus for additional information regarding Creation Units. Investors may purchase or sell ETF shares throughout the day through any brokerage account, which will result in typical brokerage commissions.

Investing involves risk. Principal loss is possible. The fund is registered as a non-diversified, open-end management investment company under the 1940 Act. Accordingly, there are no regulatory limits under the 1940 Act on the number or size of securities that we hold, and we may invest more assets in fewer issuers compared to a diversified fund. An investment in MLP securities involves some risks that differ from the risks involved in an investment in the common stock of a corporation, including risks relating to the ownership structure of MLPs, the risk that MLPs might lose their partnership status for tax purposes and the risk that MLPs will not make distributions to holders (including us) at anticipated levels or with the expected tax character.

We may invest a portion of our assets in fixed income securities rated “investment grade” by nationally recognized statistical rating organizations (“NRSROs”) or judged by our investment adviser, Tortoise Capital Advisors, L.L.C. (the “Adviser”), to be of comparable credit quality. Non-investment grade securities are rated Ba1 or lower by Moody’s, BB+ or lower by S&P or BB or lower by Fitch or, if unrated, are determined by our Adviser to be of comparable credit quality. Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers may involve risks not ordinarily associated with investments in securities and instruments of U.S. issuers, including different accounting, auditing and financial standards, less government supervision and regulation, additional tax withholding and taxes, difficulty enforcing rights in foreign countries, less publicly available information, difficulty effecting transactions, higher expenses, and exchange rate risk.

Restricted securities (including Rule 144A securities) are less liquid than freely tradable securities because of statutory and contractual restrictions on resale. This lack of liquidity creates special risks for us. Rule 144A provides an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 (the “1933 Act”), for the resale of certain restricted securities to qualified institutional buyers, such as the fund. We cannot guarantee that our covered call option strategy will be effective. There are several risks associated with transactions in options on securities. For example, the significant differences between the securities and options markets could result in an imperfect correlation between these markets. Certain securities may trade less frequently than those of larger companies that have larger market capitalizations.

There is no guarantee the fund will pay distributions in the future and distributions, if any, may be less than the current distribution.

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Nothing on this website should be considered a solicitation to buy or an offer to sell any shares of the fund in any jurisdiction where the offer or solicitation would be unlawful under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

Nothing contained in this communication constitutes tax, legal or investment advice. Investors must consult their tax advisor or legal counsel for advice and information concerning their particular situation.

NOT FDIC INSURED · NO BANK GUARANTEE · MAY LOSE VALUE