UK and Texas Sign Trade Pact to Boost Clean Energy Solutions

The UK signed on Wednesday a trade pact with Texas, aimed at boosting investment and trade cooperation in new energy solutions, life sciences, and professional services.

The so-called Statement of Mutual Cooperation (SMC) will strengthen trade between the UK and Texas, the UK government said on Wednesday during a visit of Texas Governor Greg Abbott to London.

The trade agreement is Britain’s biggest pact with a U.S. state to date, as Texas has the second largest U.S. state economy, with a GDP of $2.4 trillion (£1.9 trillion) in 2022 – larger than the economy of Italy, for example.

“The pact aims to help make it quicker, easier, and cheaper for UK and Texas firms to do business by tackling trade barriers, growing investment, and driving commerce between the UK and Texas,” the UK government said.  

“This arrangement is targeted at sectors where the UK and Texas have shared expertise such as new energy solutions - including hydrogen and carbon capture, utilization, and storage, life sciences, and professional business services.”

According to the British government, prioritizing cooperation on energy solutions such as hydrogen will help the UK to go further in achieving its goal to create more than 12,000 jobs and generate up to $14 billion (£11 billion) of investment by 2030 in the hydrogen sector alone.

“Today’s signature with Texas marks the UK’s eighth US state-level pact, meaning UK firms now have access to states with a combined GDP of £5.3 trillion - equivalent to a quarter of the whole US economy,” Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said in a statement.

“This shows our US state-level strategy is working and really delivering for British businesses.”

The UK has a trade pact with Florida, signed in November 2023, and it is also in ongoing talks to conclude memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with more U.S. states, including California, Colorado, and Illinois.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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