Macquarie, Lendlease and AusSuper among Australian firms pumping $50bn into UK projects

Some of Australia’s biggest firms will plough almost $50bn into UK clean energy, technology and infrastructure projects, turbocharging PM Boris Johnson’s jobs and growth plans.

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Picture: Daniel LEAL / AFP

Some of Australia’s biggest companies are among those that have announced plans to plough $49.93bn (£28.5bn) into clean energy, technology and infrastructure projects across the United Kingdom.

The deals will see companies including Lendlease, Macquarie Group, AustralianSuper, IFM Investors, Worley, and Andrew Forest’s Fortescue Future Industries put money towards a suite of investments.

The $49.3bn in announcements come after a Global Investment Summit organised by British prime minister Boris Johnson in October, aimed at attracting business to the UK in the wake of Brexit.

Mr Johnson hosted ten chief executives and senior business figures at a hybrid round table session on Wednesday as part of efforts to boost investments between the two countries after they inked a free-trade agreement.

“The fantastic schemes announced today will turbocharge the Government’s efforts to create jobs and growth in every part of the country and put the UK at the cutting edge of the green industrial revolution,” Mr Johnson said.

“This is Global Britain in action – building new partnerships with friends and allies around the globe to create prosperity at home.”

British consul general Sydney and deputy trade commissioner to Australia and New Zealand Louise Cantillon said the new free trade deal made investments between the two countries “even easier”.

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Picture: Daniel LEAL / AFP

“I am incredibly proud to see our Australian investors at the forefront of delivering key clean and sustainable milestone projects across the UK,” she said.

Investment bank major Macquarie Group has said it would pump $21bn (£12bn) into infrastructure projects, over ten priority areas, across the UK by 2030.

These include offshore wind power generation farms in Lincolnshire, in the English East Midlands, and north Scotland.

Macquarie group will also fund gigabit broadband projects in rural England and contribute to hydrogen hubs on the English south coast at Southampton and the Scottish islands of Orkney.

The lender will also invest in using the UK’s existing oil and gas infrastructure to receive and store carbon dioxide captured from industrial activities in the country.

Macquarie group managing director and CEO Shemara Wikramanayake said the UK had remained a focus area of the business since its first international expansion in 1989.

“The UK has been a world leader in the positive utilisation of private capital to meet essential infrastructure needs of communities, including as a global leader in investment in the energy transition,” she said.

“We look forward to building on our track record of investment of capital and expertise to deliver the next generation of UK infrastructure.”

The $21bn commitment from Macquarie follows the more than $87.6bn (£50bn) invested by the bank in the UK in the last 15 years.

Earlier this week a consortium lead by Macquarie Asset Management took a stake in the UK’s national gas transmission system.

AustralianSuper said it is forecasting a further $14bn (£8bn) in investments in the UK over the next five years.

The superannuation giant is set to join with British Land to develop the $8.76bn (£5bn) Canada Water master plan, covering a chunk of inner-London by Canary Wharf.

AustralianSuper head of investments international Damian Moloney said the fund had seen very positive experiences in the UK after investments in Heathrow Airport, Peel Ports, Canada Waters, and the Kings Cross estate redevelopment.

“There are a wide range of like-minded partners that we can work with, so it makes perfect sense to look at opportunities here. There is also a strong pipeline of opportunities for high quality assets across the UK and Europe,” he said.

Lendlease said it would also put ($9.6bn) £5.5bn towards urban construction projects across London and Birmingham over the next five years.

The investments are expected to deliver thousands of new “low carbon home” as well as training and employment in local communities.

This adds to the more than $41bn (£23.4bn) in Lendlease projects underway in the country.

Lendlease Global CEO Tony Lombardo, said the developer was “shovel ready” to deliver the new projects.

Macquarie Group CEO Shemara Wikramanayake. Picture Britta Campion / The Australian

“In line with our world-leading decarbonisation targets, we’ll be striving to make these places and neighbourhoods some of the most sustainable in the UK,” he said.

Australian super fund investor IFM will reinvest $5.2bn (£3bn) towards upgrading its existing assets in the UK, including the M6 toll road and Manchester, Stansted and East Midlands airports.

The funds manager will also support a new net zero fund and fund large scale infrastructure and energy transition projects in the country.

IFM CEO David Neal said the business was now planning to “almost double” its investments in UK infrastructure over the next five years.

“We believe the deployment of pension capital in partnership with the UK government will be critical to supporting the UK’s energy transition and net zero ambitions over the next 25 years,” he said.

Australian industrial operator Worley said it planned to now expand its UK workforce across the country with 1000 new high skilled jobs in the next 18 months.

The new jobs will go to supporting energy, chemical and natural resources projects across the country.

Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Future Industries, which recently snagged former Reserve Bank of Australia governor Guy DeBelle as chief financial officer, announced it would create up to 1000 new jobs after acquiring Williams Advanced Engineering in Oxford.

The new jobs will go to supporting decarbonisation initiatives.