130 new projects have been awarded funding in the third round of applications to the Regional Growth Fund (RGF).
For every pound of government money allocated for these projects £6 of private capital is invested. This means the third round of the fund has leveraged £6 billion of private sector capital for growth initiatives.
The 130 projects to receive funding were chosen from among 414 applications and are expected to create or safeguard around 240,000 jobs across the UK through their activities. This adds to the estimated 300,000 jobs created or safeguarded as a result of rounds 1 and 2 of the RGF.
101 of the projects awarded funding in this round are from the private sector accounting for £694m of funding. The remained of the round three funding will go to public sector intermediaries in business – such as local enterprise partnerships (LEPs).
As he announced the funding allocations for round three deputy prime minister Nick Clegg said that the RGF represented good value for money for British taxpayers.
“I have seen for myself the real difference this makes on the ground,” he commented. “From iconic businesses like Eddie Stobart expanding in Widnes and creating 3,450 jobs in the local area, to the Sunderland car parts factory, Unipres who have used their funding to buy a new 3,000 tonne press, letting them accelerate production and take on an extra 316 people.”
The manufacturer’s organisation EEF welcomed the funding announcement, particularly noting the success of the LEPs in accessing the pot.
Steve Radley, director of policy at EEF said: “Some of [the LEPs] are now starting to engage better with business and, [this funding] should provide them with the resources that many have been lacking to begin driving local growth.”
Mr Radley cautioned however that the Government must not rest on its laurels having awarded the funding. “The delays experienced in previous rounds must be avoided with funding flowing out to business much faster. The longer-term future of the fund must also be clarified, especially if government sees this as a key element of its growth strategy.”
Government has committed to completing due diligence on round three funding announcements within six months. The CBI welcomed this announcement with policy director Katja Hall saying, “the government has rightly moved to tackle one of the main criticisms of the Fund previously.”
Business Minister Michael Fallon updated parliament on progress with previous rounds up funding. He showed that there is now a firm and agreed position with nine out of ten bids from rounds one and two; and that six out of 10 projects have started (or 160 projects and programmes).
Twenty nine bidders have withdrawn, allowing over £108 million to be recycled back into the Regional Growth Fund.
The range of businesses selected for RGF Round 3 is broad. Sectors include pharmaceuticals, automotive and aerospace, right through to electronics and domestic appliances.
Regionally speaking, funding was also well spread, though the West Midlands scooped the largest share. The region has secured £124 million to apply across 17 initiatives.
The first two rounds of the RGF have been criticised for delivering the money much later than some applicants had expected, sometimes 18-months after the application. The specific criticism has been that part of the RGF’s mandate is to help finance projects that might might not be suitable for bank borrowing, therefore providing a faster access to capital for some viable projects.
Regional breakdown
East Midlands
Projects: 5
· Cummins Generator Technologies Limited (CGT)
· BCM Limited
· Guildford Mills Limited
· Lee Ann Fashions Limited
· Romax Technology Ltd
East of England & London
Projects: 4
· e2v technologies ltd.
· Perkins Engines Company Ltd (part of Caterpillar UK Holdings)
· The Welding Institute (TWI)
· Ford Motor Company Ltd
North East
Projects: 25
· Actem (UK) Limited
· Applied Superconductor Ltd
· Caterpillar Peterlee, A Division of Caterpillar UK Limited
· CAV Aerospace Limited
· Chemoxy International Ltd
· Ebac Group Limited
· Fabricom Offshore Services Limited
· High Integrity Products Group Ltd
· J Barbour & Sons Ltd
· Komatsu UK Limited
· Magma Global Limited
· Nifco UK Ltd
· Five Quarter Energy Limited
· NSK Bearings Europe Ltd
· Offshore Group Newcastle Limited
· PD Teesport Limited
· Prom Chem Limited
· SABIC UK PETROCHEMICALS LIMITED
· SCM Pharma Limited
· Siemens Transmission and Distribution Ltd
· SNF Oil and Gas Limited
· Tata Steel UK Rail Consultancy Limited
· Tees Valley Unlimited
· TRW Systems Ltd
Programmes: 1
· UNW LLP on behalf of Trinity Mirror North East
North West
Projects: 20
· AstraZeneca PLC
· Atlantic Container Line UK Ltd.
· Bentley Motors Limited
· Computionics Ltd
· Daresbury SIC LLP
· Eli Lilly and Company Limited
· Erlson Precision Components Limited
· General Motors UK Limited
· Jaguar Land Rover
· James Cropper plc
· Kilgour Metal Treatments Ltd
· Lakeland Arts Trust
· Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM)
· Novartis Vaccines & Diagnostics Ltd.
· NXP Semiconductors UK Ltd
· Pentagon Chemicals (Holdings) Limited
· PMT industries Limited
· Redx Pharma Ltd
· S Cartwright & Sons (Coach Builders) Limited
· Unilever UK Central Resources Limited
Programmes: 1
· Aircelle Limited
South East
Projects: 1
· Ricardo UK Ltd
Programmes: 2
· Isle of Wight (IoW) Marine Business Partnership
· Sea Change Sussex
South West
Projects: 6
· AgustaWestland
· AgustaWestland Limited
· Dyson Ltd
· GE Aviation Systems
· Plessey Semiconductors Limited
· Wiltshire Council and Wrenbridge Land Ltd / Trebor Developments LLP Joint Venture
Programmes: 1
· Plymouth University
West Midlands
Projects: 16
· Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd.
· Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd.
· Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd.
· Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd.
· Bladon Jets (UK) Limited
· BRM Packaging Limited
· Cab Automotive Ltd
· GE Power Conversion
· Dana UK Axle Limited
· Goodwin PLC
· Jaguar Land Rover
· Jaguar Land Rover
· Pailton Engineering Ltd
· Robert Bosch Limited
· Turner Powertrain Systems Limited
· WWRD United Kingdom Ltd
Programmes: 1
· University of Wolverhampton
Yorkshire and the Humber
Projects: 11
· AESSEAL PLC
· ATB Morley Ltd
· BorgWarner Ltd
· Cementation Skanska Limited
· DePuy International Ltd
· Harvard Engineering
· Hydra-Valve Advanced Valve & Pipeline Solutions Ltd
· J H Fenner & Co Ltd
· Koyo Bearings (Europe) Limited
· Leeds City Council
· Redirack Ltd
Local Enterprise Partnerships
Programmes: 27
· Arch (Commercial Enterprise) Ltd
· Coverntry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership
· Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership
· D2N2 Local enterprise Partnership
· Exeter and East Devon Growth Point
· Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP
· Greater Manchester Local Enterprise Partnership
· Humber Local enterprise Partnership
· Lancashire Business View
· Leeds City Council, on behalf of Leeds City Region LEP
· Leeds City Region Local Enterprise partnership
· Leicester & Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP)
· Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership
· New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership
· North East Local Enterprise Partnership (NELEP)
· North Staffordshire Chanmber of Commerce & Industry (NSCCI)
· Northamptonshire Enterprise Partnership (NEP)
· Nottingham City Council on behalf of Nottingham Technology Grant Fund Group)
· On behalf of Ellesmere Port Development Board (EPDB)
· Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council
· Sheffield City Region LEP
· Solent LEP
· Solent LEP
· Tees Valley Unlimited
· Thames Gateway Kent Partnership
· West of England Local Enterprise Partnership
· Wirral Council
Nationwide
Programmes: 9
· The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc
· Close Brothers Group plc
· Finance For Industry Limited
· ING Lease UK Ltd
· Rolls-Royce plc
· UK Steel Enterprise Limited
· Lloyds Banking Group (Lloyds TSB Bank plc and Bank of Scotland plc)
· University of Sheffield
· Grant Thornton UK LLP
For details on the objectives of each of the projects allocated funding in round 3 of RGF go to www.bis.gov.uk/rgf.
