Blackburn-headquartered Vital Energi has announced that it is expanding its operations by opening new offices in Newcastle and Swansea while also increasing its existing presence in Glasgow. This comes on top of what Vital described as a “major” refurbishment of its Blackburn headquarters, increasing seating capacity by a third.
Vital said on November 20 that these moves would expand its workforce – which currently numbers around 760 – by almost 50%, with 400 green jobs expected to be created over five years.
The company said the planned expansion was driven by a “growing pipeline” of energy generation, networks and storage projects, which it values at £2.5 billion. A Vital spokesperson did not name any specific projects but told Energy Voice that the company was developing and delivering a “diverse range” of schemes across the UK, which would “integrate innovative energy generation technologies and infrastructure”. To this end, Vital has partnered with both public and private sector organisations to help accelerate their decarbonisation, the spokesperson added, without providing further details.
© Supplied by Vital EnergiVital noted in its announcement that it expected its expanded presence to enhance collaboration with public sector organisations across the UK in particular, delivering “large-scale projects that tackle fuel poverty and reduce carbon emissions”. It cited its expertise in helping to decarbonise diverse industries and buildings, including universities, hospitals, airports and industrial facilities.
The company specialises in connecting buildings to heat networks across both the public and private sectors and has connected over 100,000 buildings to such networks to date. According to Vital’s announcement, the expansion marks the next step in the company’s plans, allowing it to become an owner of energy infrastructure as well as a developer.
“Our expansion across the UK demonstrates Vital Energi’s dedication to advancing the nation’s transition to net zero,” stated Vital’s managing director, Mike Cooke. “By opening new offices in strategic locations, we aim to develop, implement and own innovative, low-carbon energy systems.”
This shift comes after Corran Capital, a private equity firm focused on clean energy, had acquired a 30% stake in Vital from venture capital firm Scottish Equity Partners (SEP) in a deal announced in March.
According to that announcement, Corran would work “closely” with Vital to help deploy further institutional capital to accelerate the delivery of low-carbon generation, infrastructure and energy efficiency projects across the UK.
Vital said at the time that the investment would enable it to “rapidly scale as an owner and operator of low-carbon heat networks”. It added that it was also targeting new markets, moving “at pace” into adjacent technologies including solar, battery and heat storage and electric vehicle (EV) charging.
Corran is led by founding partner Gary Le Sueur, who was previously a partner in SEP. The private equity firm bought its stake in Corran using a portion of the £80m it had raised for its second fund, Corran II. Investors in Corran II included US fund Lexington Partners, Strathclyde Pension Fund’s Direct Impact Fund and SSE.
The latest announcement from Vital illustrates the next steps the company is taking in the wake of Corran’s investment.
“Expanding our portfolio of sustainable energy assets has always been a key feature of our growth strategy,” the Vital spokesperson said. “This expansion enables us to support organisations across the UK in their transition to a low-carbon future, while also creating green jobs that will help drive the economy towards sustainability.”
The development of green skills is a key part of Vital’s plans. The company intends to use its Blackburn facility for the training, upskilling and reskilling of the workforce with the UK’s long-term net zero emissions target in mind. Vital said it was also inviting industry organisations to learn from its experts.
“We are committed to contributing to the country’s net zero goals by cultivating a highly skilled workforce and collaborating with public and private sector partners,” Cooke stated.
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