The West Midlands: a Hotspot for the UK’s Net-Zero Economy

The West Midlands has spent generations turning new ideas into industry. From the age of steam to the frontier of battery technology, the West Midlands is where breakthroughs begin.

As an established net-zero ecosystem with specialist research and production facilities, a large potential manufacturing customer base and targeted investment benefits, the West Midlands is an engine helping drive the UK green economy by generating £7.8 billion GVA in net-zero and supporting 87,400 full-time equivalent jobs across net-zero companies.

With a triple helix approach that combines the power of private-sector ambition with public-sector incentives and academic expertise, the region offers the right conditions for low-carbon companies to turn innovation into commercial growth.

The Wolverhampton GIC, the Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone, and the Birmingham-Coventry corridor identified in the CBI’s report bring together the expertise and facilities they need to design, test, manufacture and innovate — all in one region.

Having everything needed to move ideas from the drawing board to production within one regional ecosystem empowers companies to overcome barriers on their journey to market. They can benefit from research and development, production, and material recovery facilities without having to assemble those capabilities across several disconnected locations.

Over 700 companies have partnered with WMG, the largest department at the University of Warwick. Companies can leverage WMG’s research and engineering expertise in battery technology and electrification to design new battery products.

The manufacturing process for those products can then be formulated at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre. UKBIC gives businesses access to specialist production equipment without requiring them to invest immediately in their own full-scale facility, helping reduce the cost and risk involved in moving from a successful prototype to a repeatable manufacturing process.

Successful commercialisation is dependent on de-risking and proving emerging technologies.

At TEP Birmingham, businesses can develop and demonstrate technologies within a working energy and industrial setting, supported by expertise in hydrogen, energy storage, low-carbon fuels and waste-to-value systems.

This gives companies an opportunity to gather the technical and commercial evidence needed to attract customers or further investment.

The region also supports the later stages of the product lifecycle. Recyclus Group was the first UK company to recycle lithium-ion batteries.

Its battery-recycling operations in Wolverhampton provide capacity to process end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and recover valuable materials.

Alongside battery and materials research at WMG and recycling activity at TEP Birmingham, Recyclus Group is helping build a more circular supply chain around electrification and clean technology.

These specialist facilities sit within a wider network of science parks, innovation hubs and advanced manufacturing locations. The University of Warwick Science Park, Wolverhampton Science Park and hubs such as STEAMhouse provide the workspace, business support and connections companies need to grow.

They bring together entrepreneurs, SMEs and high-growth businesses, placing them alongside established business leaders with experience scaling ideas into successful commercial ventures.

Through workshops, seminars, mentoring and networking events, these locations strengthen the region’s innovation ecosystem, helping businesses share knowledge, build partnerships and turn new ideas into market-ready opportunities.

The Coventry & Warwick Investment Zone and the Wolverhampton Green Innovation Corridor sites then give companies room to expand as they grow beyond desk space and move their technologies towards commercial production.

The region’s industrial legacy also gives it a high concentration of energy-intensive manufacturing businesses facing rising costs and pressure to decarbonise.

This creates a customer base for companies developing low-carbon technologies to test and scale solutions with businesses that have a clear commercial need.

The West Midlands is already a proven centre of net-zero economic activity. Its combination of research expertise, specialist testing and manufacturing facilities, established supply chains and industrial demand gives low-carbon companies access to support at multiple stages of commercialisation.

For businesses developing the technologies of a greener economy, the region provides a clear route from research and development through testing and production to market adoption and commercial growth.