(Reuters) – The British authorities mentioned that Saudi petrochemical agency Saudi Fundamental Industries Corp (SABIC) would make investments practically 1 billion kilos ($1.37 billion) at its Teesside facility in northeast England with the goal of decarbonisation.

“Incredible to see practically £1 billion invested in @SABIC’s Teesside facility, creating and safeguarding 1,000 jobs,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson mentioned in a tweet https://twitter.com/BorisJohnson/standing/1453452234910535681 on Wednesday night.

“It is an enormous vote of confidence within the UK’s chemical substances and processing business, which is pioneering innovation in clear, inexperienced know-how,” he added.

SABIC confirmed the funding in a press release to Reuters and mentioned its whole funding within the UK is round 1 billion kilos.

The corporate mentioned the funding would come with strengthening operations at Teesside and enabling its chemical cracker transformation.

“This can scale back its carbon footprint by as much as 60 per cent in section one, making it one of many world’s lowest carbon-emitting crackers,” it added.

The announcement comes as Britain is ready to host the COP26 U.N. local weather talks in Glasgow, Scotland.

Earlier this month, the UK authorities set out a net-zero technique underneath which it goals to assist the nation achieve a aggressive edge in low-carbon applied sciences comparable to carbon seize and storage.

Earlier on Wednesday, Saudi Arabia’s funding minister, Khalid al-Falih, mentioned Saudi Arabia and Britain had signed a memorandum of understanding to advertise bilateral funding flows.

($1 = 0.7280 kilos)