A UK-Saudi summit in London has wrapped up with over GBP 360 mn in new joint investments, the UK’s Department for Business and Trade said in a statement. The agreements, unveiled by UK Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds at the Great Futures Summit, are expected to create 187 jobs in both countries, with 97 of them located in the UK.

The closing conference was attended by the largest Saudi trade delegation to date, including 195 business leaders and 33 government officials, as well as over 320 representatives of British companies and some 30 UK government officials, state news agency SPA reported.

THE BREAKDOWN-

The clean energy sector received the largest single investment: Alfanar launched its new UK headquarters in London with a GBP 94 mn investment to support the GBP 2 bn Lighthouse Green Fuels project in Teesside, set to become the world’s largest facility for sustainable aviation fuels, according to the statement.

In the financial sector, International Investment Gate (IIG) is opening its European HQ in London to oversee GDP 550 mn of UK assets and a new GBP 60 mn UK property fund. Meanwhile, Lexham Partners and ANB Capital are launching the first institutional USD 200 mn Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Growth Fund to back the region’s tech companies. UK’s Salica Investments will also launch a USD 75 mn fund focused on the MENA region.

UK firms are expanding their presence in Saudi Arabia, including:

  • Global insurance group Howden is launching a reins. business in the Kingdom as part of a multi-mn GBP investment;
  • Control Risks is establishing a regional HQ in Riyadh;
  • Fintech Paymentology is committing USD 7.5 mn to establish a presence in Riyadh,

The education and skills sector saw more than 10 new partnerships, including Cambridge University Press and Assessment establishing an office in Riyadh to support education transformation.

Going strong: The Great Futures campaign, launched in Riyadh in May 2024, secured over GBP 3.7 bn in agreements and created more than 4.1 UK jobs since its launch in May 2024, according to the statement.

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