The National Wealth Fund will unlock over £70 billion in private investment to help deliver economic growth, make Britain a clean energy superpower, and strengthen the defence sector, the Chancellor has confirmed today [19 March]. 

The new strategic direction sets clean energy, advanced manufacturing, digital technologies, and transport as new priority sectors for the National Wealth Fund. Money will be invested across the United Kingdom in projects like carbon capture, green hydrogen, gigafactories, green steel, and ports.  

Crucially, the Chancellor’s steer will help direct investment to the industries our defence sector relies on – advanced manufacturing and digital and dual-use technologies – working with industry to keep Britain safe and building on the Government’s commitment to increase spending on defence and national security to 2.5% of GDP from April 2027.   

The National Wealth Fund’s economic capital limit will also be increased from £4.5 billion to £7 billion, allowing it take on greater risk. This means it has more flexibility over its investments and can support more projects that struggle to access private finance.

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, said:

My number one mission is kickstarting economic growth through our Plan for Change to make Great Britain a stronger, more resilient country and put more money into the pockets of working people.

I am determined to go further and faster to get our economy growing. By directing tens of billions of pounds into the UK’s industrial strengths, we’ll deliver the high-skilled, high-paid jobs of the future in every corner of the country.

Since July last year, the National Wealth Fund has unlocked 9,900 jobs and nearly £1.8 billion of private investment in growth-driving industries like green energy and technology. 

Investment has already started flowing into priority sectors including £55 million for Connected Kerb to increase coverage of EV charging networks and a £28.6 million investment into Cornish Metals. 

The Chancellor’s strategic steer comes as a new £9.6 million National Wealth Fund investment was announced today for Solihull Council to improve the area’s heating infrastructure and reduce bills, providing low carbon heating, hot water and power to town centre buildings. 

To lead this new chapter for the UK’s flagship public investor, the Government has also launched a recruitment campaign for the National Wealth Fund’s next CEO. 

John Flint will step down from the role of CEO in the summer after successfully seeing through the National Wealth Fund’s transition from the UK Infrastructure Bank. 

The Chancellor will also establish a new UK Strategic Public Investment Forum joining up the UK’s leading policymakers and public financial institutions including the CEOs of the National Wealth Fund, British Business Bank, UK Export Finance, Homes England, Innovate UK, and Great British Energy and The Crown Estate. 

The forum – the first of its kind – will cooperate on delivering investments to the priority areas set out by the Chancellor and will be tasked with ensuring the Government is getting maximum impact for its investments.  

Stemming from this, the National Wealth Fund will work closely with Great British Energy to support its quick establishment as a publicly owned clean energy company that will boost Britain’s energy security making it a clean energy superpower, lower bills, create jobs, and grow the economy.

Investing in homegrown clean energy industries is an essential part of the government’s drive to replace the UK’s dependency on fossil fuel markets controlled by petrostates and dictators with clean, homegrown power.

Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP, said:

Clean power is the economic opportunity of the 21st century – and through the National Wealth Fund we will seize this opportunity to invest in British industries and workers.

We are delivering our clean energy superpower mission to make our country energy secure and deliver the good jobs that the British people deserve.

More details on Great British Energy’s developer mandate have also been released today.

The partnership between Great British Energy and the National Wealth Fund will see the former bringing project development expertise as well as investment, and the latter providing finance, a model already being deployed in Japan and Denmark. 

Harnessing private investment via the National Wealth Fund is part of the Government’s wider efforts to kickstart economic growth and deliver a new era of security and renewal through our Plan for Change. 

Cutting red tape so major infrastructure projects can progress, removing unnecessary hurdles in the planning system so more homes can be built, and progressing new economic partnerships with international partners like Japan and India is part of the work being undertaken to grow the economy and put more money in people’s pockets.

More information

• Investments made by the National Wealth Fund can be found on the National Wealth Fund website 

• Further details of the Chancellor’s strategic steer for the National Wealth Fund can be found in the Statement of Strategic Priorities to the National Wealth Fund

• Further details of the recruitment of the National Wealth Fund’s next CEO can be found in the National Wealth Fund Candidate Information Pack CEO (PDF, 463 KB, 13 pages).

• The findings of the public financial institution stocktake including a landscape map can be found in the Launch of the UK Strategic Public Investment Forum