UK business sets up private hydrogen fund

Green entrepreneur Jo Bamford and fund manager Vedra Partners have launched Hycap, a hydrogen investment fund which has set its sights on raising £1bn ($1.38bn), they said September 6.

Set up with an eye on the COP26 summit this year, the fund has already amassed over £200mn from the first investment round. UK businesses will have the lion's share, with the focus on speeding up green hydrogen production and supply. Bamford said the UK hydrogen sector needs a £1bn injection to help it compete with other territories.

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“With the government’s 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 – and there is a growing sense of urgency to act now,” he explained.

With China and the Far East dominant in batteries, he said the UK could "be global leaders in the production and supply of hydrogen – an economy said to be worth $2.5 trillion in revenues by 2050.”

Bamford said his team had already identified more than 40 firms in the hydrogen space which will be evaluated for investment. “We have also discovered that investors around the world match the ambitions of global governments in wanting green-focused funds which have a positive impact on climate change,” he added.

The Hycap team has working knowledge of more than 150 utility-scale renewables projects in more than 12 countries and has dozens of UK investment opportunities in its sights.

Vedra Partners' founder Max Gottschalk said: “The fund will be investing across the entire value chain, focusing on production, manufacture and supply, in order to put the UK firmly on the map when it comes to hydrogen." 

The UK aims to have 5 GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030, having launched belatedly its hydrogen strategy last month. Bamford is heir to the major 'yellow goods' maker JCB.