The NWF has today announced over 64,000 jobs are set to be created or supported across the UK’s nations and regions as a result of its investment activity, as it publishes “Financing growth, powering change” - its inaugural Impact Report.

The report, which highlights the early impact of its growing portfolio, focuses on how its investments are laying the foundations for long-term growth: creating jobs, driving investment across all four corners of the UK, unlocking high-growth sectors and attracting private capital into UK business. In its first year as the National Wealth Fund, £3.6bn has been deployed, through 22 new investments, representing a significant acceleration in the rate of capital deployment over the past year and the scale of projected impact. In total, a quarter of the NWF’s capital has been committed (£7.5bn) since 2021.

From tin mining in Cornwall to port infrastructure near Inverness, flood defence schemes in Wales and broadband in Northern Ireland, the NWF is investing for growth and net zero in every nation and region of the UK. Since 2021, NWF investments are enabling the creation and support of over 64,000 jobs, strengthening local labour markets and stimulating wider supply chains, with over 21,900 directly attributable to our financing.

The NWF’s role in nascent and emerging markets is proving to be significant, with almost a third of the portfolio covering early-stage financing in projects including battery storage, semiconductors and hydrogen aviation. By de-risking the scaling of new technologies, the NWF is catalysing private investment - £16.2bn to date - in sectors which are critical to the UK’s growth and transition to clean energy.

Total portfolio at a glance

  • £7.5bn invested across 62 projects in all corners of the United Kingdom.
  • £16.2bn in private investment mobilised.
  • Supported Local Authority and Mayoral Strategic Authorities to realise investments in their areas, providing commercial and financial advice across 70 engagements and funding eight strategically important projects across the UK.

Key deliverables

  • Over half of portfolio represents clean energy (£3.9bn), creating 6.3GW of additional capacity – enough to power 4.5 million homes.
  • A third of the portfolio represents nascent and emerging markets, from battery storage to semiconductors and hydrogen aviation.
  • £1.7bn invested in fibre broadband, connecting over 20m homes, with the majority in underserved or hard to reach areas.
  • More than 34,000 new public EV charging points through Connected Kerb, Gridserve and Osprey.
  • Financial guarantees to support the retrofit of up to 280,000 social homes, working with Barclays, Lloyds, THFC and NatWest.
  • New financing for term loan to Sizewell C, supporting the UK’s national infrastructure.

Looking ahead, the NWF’s expanded mandate, set out by the Chancellor in March, enables it to deploy capital at scale in the largest and most strategically important projects for the UK’s growth and clean energy missions. Under the leadership of Oliver Holbourn, who joins on 1 November, the Fund will continue to scale up deployment, launching new products into the market and continuing to build strategic partnerships with Mayoral Combined Authorities to unlock wider benefits throughout the UK. 

Ian Brown, Interim CEO at NWF said:

Impact is a driving force behind our investment decisions as we lay the foundations for long-term growth, and it’s incredibly rewarding to start seeing that impact come to life as our portfolio matures. Looking back, we’ve helped develop cutting-edge skills and nascent technologies, created new jobs to boost local economies, and crowded in significant private capital to help scale the UK’s energy infrastructure. We’ve achieved a lot in a short time, but there’s much more to come as we continue to expand into new sectors.

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