ZeroAvia a hydrogen electric aircraft developer has announced it will be building a ‘major’, manufacturing facility to produce its hydrogen-electric powertrains at the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland, close to Glasgow Airport in Renfrewshire.
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney and UK Government Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray launched the new project alon
gside ZeroAvia CEO Val Miftakhov on 21 May.
The new facility will focus on hydrogen fuel cells with plans to expand its government R&D funding and aircraft testing centre at the Cotswold Airport in Gloucestershire.
ZeroAvia believe this new Hydrogen Centre of Excellence facility will complement its Propulsion Centre of Excellence in Washington State which produces electric motors and power electronics.
John Swinney, First Minister of Scotland, said: “Scotland has the skills, the talent and the innovation to be at the forefront of efforts to tackle the climate emergency while developing significant new opportunities to grow the economy.”
“ZeroAvia’s decision to establish a base in Scotland – creating 350 highly-skilled jobs in the process – is the perfect illustration of Scotland’s growing reputation in the global transition to net zero.”
The project is expected to unlock millions in private investment and support hundreds of jobs over the next few years, made possible via £9 million of the Regional Selective Assistance grant from Scottish Enterprise.
This follows an equity investment of £20 million from the Scottish National Investment Bank into ZeroAvia as part of the company’s Series C funding, with the UK National Wealth Fund investing £32 million as a cornerstone-level investor in the round.
Scottish Secretary, Ian Murray, said: “Crucial investment from the UK Government is helping to develop the fuel cell technology that will be manufactured here in Scotland at this new facility.”
Val Miftakhov, Founder & Chief Executive, ZeroAvia, added: “With this new facility, Scotland has a big role to play in driving this transformation. We welcome the grant award from Scottish Enterprise and the support of our equity investors that has enabled us to move into another phase of manufacturing readiness as we progress towards certification of our first engines.”