The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has confirmed that Business Secretary Vince Cable will this month reveal the location of Government’s much-anticipated Green Investment Bank (GIB) later this month. Since plans for the £3 billion bank were announced, 32 towns and cities including Edinburgh, Manchester, London and Liverpool have been in the running to host its headquarters.
The tendering process, which has now closed, received bids from the UK’s leading financial locations as well as smaller towns – all of which are hoping to become the center of the UK’s emerging green economy.
“I am delighted that the Green Investment Bank has fired the imagination of so many public and private sector groups keen to host this world-first institution,” said Cable.
“They all have a role to play in helping the UK seize the benefits of a transition to a low carbon economy.”
All of the 32 submissions will now be evaluated against the GIB criteria by a review panel. The results from this will then be passed on to Vince Cable, who will announce his final decision later this month.
Government has also announced that it will invest as UK Green Investments (UKGI) in green infrastructure projects from April 2012, ahead of obtaining state aid approval for the Green Investment Bank. Non-domestic energy efficiency will be one of the priority sectors for UKGI, which will make available up to £100 million in the next financial year for commercial and industrial energy efficiency projects.
The locations in with a chance of hosting the Green Investment Bank are:
Bicester
Birmingham
Brighton
Bristol
Cardiff
Chester
Cornwall
Coventry and Warwickshire
Derby
Durham
Edinburgh
Gloucester
Hull
Ipswich
Leeds
Leicester
Liverpool
London
Manchester
Milton Keynes
Newcastle
Norwich
Nottingham
Peterborough
Renfrewshire
Sheffield
Southampton
Stoke-on-Trent
Sunderland
Tees Valley
Torbay
Warrington
