The UK Government has announced up to £120m of additional funding for the Green Industries Growth Accelerator (GIGA) to further support expansion of low carbon manufacturing supply chains across the UK.
The total fund, which has now increased to almost £1.1bn, will be split between the clean energy sectors, with around £390m earmarked to expand UK-based supply chains for electricity networks and offshore wind sectors, and around £390m for carbon capture, utilisation and storage and hydrogen sectors.
The news comes ahead of the Spring Budget and forms part of a larger funding package for the UK’s life sciences and manufacturing sector.
Industry body RenewableUK welcomed the funding announcement, noting that it previously called on Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to commit up to £400m of GIGA funding to co-invest with the private sector and grow the offshore wind supply chain, boosting economic activity across the country.
It called for additional measures to accelerate the roll-out of renewables, including increasing investment in port infrastructure.
RenewableUK Chief Executive Dan McGrail said: “The Chancellor has a great opportunity in his Spring Budget speech to build on growing investor confidence in the UK and put us ahead of our global competitors in the escalating global race to build new clean energy projects and, crucially, to seize new manufacturing and supply chain opportunities.
“The increase in GIGA funding to secure further private investment in green manufacturing jobs will enable us to supply more goods and services to projects here and aboard. It’s also good to see that nearly £400m of that funding will be used specifically to grow our offshore wind supply chain and electricity networks.”