Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has unveiled £29.5 billion of new investment for thriving UK sectors, triple the sum raised at the last Global Investment Summit in 2021.
Sunak says the investments, which were announced at the Global Investment Summit yesterday, will, “create thousands of new jobs and are a huge vote of confidence in the future of the UK economy” will impact several industries, such as tech, life sciences, infrastructure, housing and renewable energy.
In a move to expedite the UK’s transition to a low-carbon energy system, Spanish electric utility company Iberdrola has pledged to invest £7 billion as part of a broader £12 billion program spanning 2024-2028.
Approximately two-thirds of this commitment will be directed towards the expansion and modernisation of electricity transmission and distribution networks, recognised as critical enablers of the clean energy transition.
The UK Government, National Grid, Ofgem, and the National Infrastructure Commission are collaborating to refine the country’s electricity grid, addressing the issue of delays faced by renewable energy generators in connecting to the network.
IFM Investors, an Australian investment manager, has also made a firm commitment to invest £10 billion in large-scale infrastructure and energy transition projects in the UK over the next four years.
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The firm has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department for Business & Trade to identify commercially viable opportunities. Potential projects include Nala Renewables, a UK-based portfolio company within IFM, which is looking for investment opportunities in the UK as it strives to achieve a renewable capacity target of 4GW by 2025.
North Star, a portfolio company, has pledged £500 million to offshore wind infrastructure over the next five years, creating 400 jobs in the UK. This commitment follows a £200 million investment in critical maritime infrastructure at Dogger Bank, the UK’s largest offshore wind farm, which will have the capacity to power up to 6 million homes annually.
Gren, another portfolio company, has also committed £1 billion to support its ambition to invest in district heating and local energy systems. This investment will deliver affordable green energy to over 200,000 homes and thousands of businesses.
Sunak hailed the new wave of investments, worth more than £29 billion, stating, “with new funding pouring into key industries like clean energy, life sciences and advanced technology, inward investment is creating high-quality new jobs and driving growth right across the country.”
