Rolls-Royce has unveiled a partnership with Qatar to build a new UK hub for green tech and engineering as both countries look to push towards net-zero following a meeting between Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Qatari Emir, and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson at the COP26 summit.
Rolls-Royce logo. Credit: betto rodrigues / Shutterstock
Rolls-Royce has partnered with the Qatar Foundation to build new hubs for green engineering. Credit: betto rodrigues / Shutterstock
As part of the deal, two new campuses, one in the North of England and one in Qatar, will be built over the coming decades in a bid to encourage new startups with scale-up opportunities to accelerate the energy transition.
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Current plans involve the creation of at least five new tech "unicorns" - private companies with a net worth exceeding $1 billion - by the end of the decade, with as many as 20 by 2040 thanks to a mix of investments from both the oil-rich country and private backers.
The two parties claim these plans could lead to the creation of 10,000 new tech jobs by 2040, although further details were not divulged.
Furthermore, a feasibility study of potential sites and details of the plan is set to be complete by mid-2022.
The partnership should place Qatar in the top five globally for green research and development progress as the company looks to reduce emissions in its natural gas sector by 25% by 2030.
Rolls-Royce has also pledged to completely decarbonise its automotive wing by 2030.
However, decarbonisation still continued to be a massive challenge for the group, owing to it still raking in large profits from its aerospace wing.
"For us, the transition to net-zero is both a societal imperative and an excellent commercial opportunity", said Rolls-Royce CEO Warren East.
"This partnership with Qatar Foundation will enable us to accelerate progress in clean energy, including by allowing us to fully take advantage of nascent technologies that could have a significant impact on tackling climate change", he added.
Qatar's involvement in these investments is set to be made through its sometimes controversial state-owned nonprofit the Qatar Foundation.
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The Foundation's head, Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, said: “Today’s most pressing problems: climate change, soil restoration, water resources, animal welfare and human health are all inextricably linked. We stand ready to work together with our partners Rolls-Royce in developing new clean energy technologies."
She added that research into clean energy ecosystems could help "further the Foundations" pledge towards "a better future".
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