Clean Growth Fund Announces Second Close at £81.5m
Clean Growth Fund has announced the second close of its Fund II vehicle, taking total investor commitments to £81.5 million – more than halfway towards its £150 million target. This milestone equips the fund to continue backing Seed to Series A UK companies pioneering technologies that have the potential to cut carbon emissions and grow Britain’s green economy, while delivering a target net return on capital of 20% IRR.
The second close is anchored by a £22.5 million commitment from Border to Coast’s UK Opportunities Fund, launched in 2024 to seek long-term risk adjusted returns for its LGPS Partner Funds and back investments that help drive UK economic growth. The pool partnership has combined assets of around £120 billion, representing 18 Local Government Pension Scheme partner funds.
Beverley Gower-Jones OBE, Founder and Managing Partner of Clean Growth Fund, said:
“Border to Coast joining Fund II takes us past the halfway mark towards our £150 million target. Increasingly, major institutional investors are looking to UK climate tech for exactly what it offers – strong long-term returns alongside real economic growth right across the country. We exist to connect British institutional capital with British innovation – the returns and the impact go hand-in-hand. Fund I invested in 19 UK startups on track to abate 27m tCO2e per year by 2030, equivalent to 1.5x the carbon absorbed by all UK forests. Fund II aims to back 25 companies and scale them. It has already invested in four start-ups, across Sheffield, Bristol, Cardiff and London, developing groundbreaking innovations in battery tech, food, heavy industry and buildings – creating good quality regional jobs and driving clean industrial growth. The UK has the world-class universities, the scientific talent, the regulatory framework, and the policy ambition – and its net zero economy is growing more than three times faster than the economy as a whole. That is the opportunity Border to Coast is moving to capture, ahead of the curve. The more capital that gets behind British innovation, the faster it scales into global winners. This is where the growth is, and I’m confident about how much further we can take it.”
Keith Angood, Portfolio Manager, Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, said:
“Border to Coast’s UK Opportunities Fund targets investment into high-quality UK companies and assets that can deliver attractive returns whilst contributing to economic growth and development across the UK. Clean Growth Fund II strongly matches these objectives, providing exposure to innovative UK businesses operating in a growing sector, managed by an experienced team with a proven track record. We believe it offers an attractive opportunity to deliver long-term value for our Partner Funds while supporting UK innovation.”
The second close includes a further £10 million from Strathclyde Pension Fund – which has backed Clean Growth Fund since Fund I – increasing its Fund II commitment to £30 million. They join Islington Pension Fund and East Riding Pension Fund creating a widening coalition of British pension capital backing homegrown innovation.
Lorraine Martin, Investment Manager at Strathclyde Pension Fund, said:
“We first invested in Clean Growth Fund because it offered a compelling opportunity to deliver strong long-term returns for our members while backing UK innovation. That thesis has materialised, and our increased commitment to Fund II reflects our continued confidence in the team as well as the scale and strength of the opportunity. This is exactly the kind of productive, homegrown investment we believe can deliver for our members over the long term.”
The Fund II second close follows Clean Growth Fund’s successful exit from Rendesco in May 2026. Now the UK’s leading clean heat network developer, Rendesco secured £100 million in new investment from Pioneer Point Partners. Gower-Jones added: “Rendesco is exactly the kind of British success story Clean Growth Fund exists to back. It’s fantastic to have supported the business on its journey and to see it continue to scale and attract further investment as it helps decarbonise heat for homes and businesses nationwide”.
Clean Growth Fund champions a place-based investment strategy, backing climate innovation from the established science and investment centres of Oxford, Cambridge and London – to emerging hubs found in the regions right across the UK. It is holding its 8th pitching & networking Roadshow in Cardiff, 7th October. More info: cardiff-roadshow.eventbrite.com
Clean Growth Fund was advised again by Pinsent Masons LLP with a team led by Ian Warner.
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