The Business Growth Fund (BGF) set up by five major UK banking groups to stimulate business in the country, has led a £8.76m ($12m) investment into Magma Global, a local designer and manufacturer of high performance carbon fibre pipe for subsea oil and gas applications.
Magma’s two existing investors, NES Partners, a Danish venture capital investor focused on new energy solutions, and Kern Energy Partners, a Canadian specialist energy investor, also participated in the round.
The latest funding will be used to finance a new, high-tech manufacturing facility in Southampton which will support production of up to 250km of pipe per year.
In just two years Magma has grown from a team of five to a total workforce of 90 and the new facility should add an additional 100 to this number. The company’s order book currently exceeds $70m.
Martin Jones, chief executive of Magma Global, said: “Kern and NES backed us from the beginning and have been a great support. As we take on more capital to accelerate our growth it’s great to have a UK investor come on board.”