Around 400 jobs are set to be created after hydrogen firmed GeoPura secured a £56m investment to ramp up its work in clean energy.
GeoPura – based at the Siemens Energy site in Newcastle with hubs in Nottingham, Matlock and Sheffield – has secured £30m from the UK Infrastructure Bank and support from the company’s existing investors to boost production capacity, growing its skilled workforce and increase the rollout of its power generation technology. The funds come exactly a year after the business sealed a £36m deal from global industry leaders to start scaling its business.
This fresh round of investment – which has led to additional investment from Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital and supported by GeoPura’s investors GM Ventures, SWEN Capital Partners, and Siemens Energy Ventures – will see the company increase the manufacture and supply of its Hydrogen Power Units (HPUs) at its Newcastle facility.
Read more: Merit mulls third UK factory in moves to become £450m turnover firm Read more: North East deals of the week – key contracts, acquisitions and investmentsAround 400 jobs are expected to be created over the next five years as the funds back GeoPura’s continued growth and investment in green skills. The investment follows a successful year for GeoPura in which it more than doubled its headcount from 30 to 85, also recruiting its first hydrogen apprentices, securing new customers and expanding its reach into Europe.
The firm’s HPUs, which replace traditional diesel generators and emit zero harmful emissions, have been used for temporary, supplementary, off-grid and backup power and GeoPura has been looking to expand the use of hydrogen into other areas such as EV charging and supplementary grid power. The company’s clean energy power units have already been supplied to high-profile customers including the Ministry of Defence, Balfour Beatty, National Grid and the BBC, where, for example, GeoPura has powered all series of Springwatch, Autumnwatch and Winterwatch since May 2021.
GeoPura will also expand its production of green hydrogen, helping to transform an old coal power station site as part of the HyMarnham Power Green Hydrogen project in the East Midlands – a 50/50 JV between GeoPura and JG Pears. The firm said that scaling up of green hydrogen is vital to help meet net zero targets in sectors such as construction, and in industrial heartlands, complementing renewables by providing supplementary power to the electricity grid.
The company is mass manufacturing HPUs in collaboration with partner Siemens Energy and plans to have a fleet of over 3,600 by 2033, providing low-cost reliable power that can displace more than ten million tonnes of CO2 emissions through their operation over their life.
The GeoPura green hydrogen based system in place at the Goodwood Festival of Speed (Image: GeoPura)Andrew Cunningham, CEO of GeoPura, said: “Having experienced the hottest year on record in 2023 with the negative impact of extreme weather events increasing globally every month, our need to combat climate change has never been more urgent. Now, more than ever, we need to act and provide industry with proven and effective solutions to achieve their Net Zero goals as well as allowing them to reduce their liability for destroying air quality with particulates, NOx (nitrogen oxides) and other harmful emissions from traditional generators.
“The challenge of replacing the estimated $300bn installed base of highly polluting diesel generators over the next 10 years is significant and requires the scale and commitment that investors such as UKIB and our existing highly supportive shareholders and partners provide. We’re delighted to be taking this next step and it’s brilliant to be working together to make a real, tangible impact today by reducing filthy engine emissions, providing better air quality for us all.”
John Flint, CEO at UK Infrastructure Bank, said: “Our investment in GeoPura is another example of our problem solving in action. By removing barriers to investment in the hydrogen sector – a critical nascent market on the route to net zero – we are creating a sustainable platform from which to finance additional green hydrogen projects in the near future.”
James Ferrier, director, principal investments, Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital added: “GeoPura’s work is incredibly exciting in that they are helping to accelerate the UK’s adoption of green hydrogen by addressing supply and demand simultaneously, all the while building the workforce of the future. We look forward to seeing GeoPura’s growth over the coming years.”
Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Gareth Davies said: “We’re backing our green industry to seize opportunities in the transition that will help grow our economy – the Bank’s first green hydrogen deal is part of that plan. From boosting green jobs to cutting emissions with their cutting-edge tech, GeoPura is helping us lead the way to a cleaner, greener UK.”
