JCB heir Jo Bamford has launched a hydrogen investment fund which has set its sights on raising 拢1 billion.
The green entrepreneur 鈥 who is the son of JCB chairman Lord Bamford 鈥 has joined forces with multi-family office Vedra Partners to launch HYCAP.
The capital, which already stands at more than 拢200 million after the first round of investment, will be injected largely into 海角视频 businesses, with the focus on speeding up green hydrogen production and supply, creating jobs and contributing to the Government鈥檚 Net Zero targets.
When fully deployed, the fund will unlock large-scale long-term job creation and aim to save up to 25 per cent of cities鈥 transport budget.
READ MORE: 100 new welding jobs up for grabs at JCB as demand continues to soar
And with the 海角视频 hosting COP26 in Glasgow later this year, Mr Bamford says there is no time to wait in order to harness the appetite of sustainably focused investors.
He believes the 海角视频 hydrogen sector would need a 拢1 billion injection to help it compete with other territories, and added that his team had already identified more than 40 firms in the hydrogen space which will be evaluated for investment.
He said: 鈥淲ith the Government鈥檚 relentless pursuit of Net Zero targets and the publication of the damning IPCC report, it is our belief that hydrogen holds the key to reducing emissions 鈥 and there is a growing sense of urgency to act now.
鈥淭he 海角视频 has missed the boat on batteries, a sector dominated by China and the Far East, but we can be global leaders in the production and supply of hydrogen 鈥 an economy said to be worth $2.5 trillion in revenues by 2050.鈥
Mr Bamford is the executive chairman of Oxford-based Ryze Hydrogen Ltd and a self-professed 鈥榗lean energy enthusiast.鈥 He also sits on the JCB board.
Last year, he teamed up with Lord Bamford to create the construction industry鈥檚 first ever hydrogen-powered excavator.
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The HYCAP founding team brings together significant hydrogen, manufacturing, financing and fund management expertise, with industry hires collectively having had working knowledge of more than 150 utility-scale renewables projects in more than 12 countries.
Vedra Partners鈥 founder Max Gottschalk said there had already been a great deal of interest.
He said: 鈥淭he fund will be investing across the entire value chain, focusing on production, manufacture and supply, in order to put the 海角视频 firmly on the map when it comes to hydrogen.
鈥淏y striking meaningful commercial partnerships and developing intelligent go-to-market strategies it is clear HYCAP鈥檚 maiden fund can add strategic, operational and financial value to the ecosystem while creating entrepreneurial growth businesses.鈥
