JCB heir Jo Bamford has launched a hydrogen investment fund which has set its sights on raising £1 billion.

[emaillocker id=”71749″]

The green entrepreneur – who is the son of JCB chairman Lord Bamford – has joined forces with multi-family office Vedra Partners to launch HYCAP.

The capital, which already stands at more than £200 million after the first round of investment, will be injected largely into UK businesses, with the focus on speeding up green hydrogen production and supply, creating jobs and contributing to the Government’s 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’ transport budget.

And with the UK 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 UK hydrogen sector would need a £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: “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.

[/emaillocker]