Rice Acquisition Corporation 3 (RAC3) is a SPAC — a blank check company with no operations of its own — formed to acquire a private energy company and take it public. RAC3 raised $345M in its October 2025 IPO and has until October 2027 (with an optional extension to January 2028) to close a deal, or it must return the trust funds to public shareholders. RAC3 is sponsored by Rice Investment Group and Mercuria, both established energy investors, whose industry relationships and deal experience are the primary assets RAC3 brings to sourcing a target. RAC3 is focused on four energy sub-sectors: upstream oil and gas consolidation, power generation (including geothermal, nuclear, and waste-to-power), energy infrastructure (natural gas storage, CO2 infrastructure, and LNG), and critical metals, minerals, and data centers tied to U.S. strategic priorities and AI computing demand. The sponsor received founder shares representing roughly 25% of post-deal equity for a nominal upfront payment — the classic SPAC "promote" — creating a strong incentive to close a deal. Public shareholders get downside protection via a redemption right at roughly $10.00 per share if they dislike the chosen target, but participate in any upside if the acquisition performs well. RAC3 must acquire a target with a fair market value equal to at least 80% of net trust assets.