UK nations and regions
Wales
Wales has a history of innovation and continues to be at the cutting edge of technology and sustainability.
With a talented workforce and strong research and development facilities, Wales is producing technology for the future in the advanced manufacturing, life sciences, clean tech and digital sectors. More than 1,395 foreign-owned companies are operating in Wales, including Toyota, Siemens Healthineers, GE Aerospace, Sony and Airbus.
Key facts for Wales
Less than 2 hours train travel time between Cardiff and London
3 national parks covering 20% of Wales
9 universities
£15.2 billion goods exported from Wales in 2025
3,600 tech businesses employing 45,000 people
£1.6 billion spent on R&D in 2022
An industrial strategy for the whole of the UK
The modern Industrial Strategy is a new economic approach – a whole-of-government effort to back the UK’s strengths, with ambitious plans for 8 high-growth sectors (known as the IS-8) and the frontier industries at their leading edge, from quantum to pharmaceuticals. It is a 10-year plan, built on stability and openness, to make the UK the best country to invest in.
Building on Wales' strengths
Wales already has a huge amount to celebrate and the Industrial Strategy’s sector plans promote its wide-ranging strengths to investors.
Advanced manufacturing
Wales has significant strengths in aerospace, clustered around Airbus' Broughton site, and automotive, including Toyota's Deeside plant. AMRC (Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre) Cymru provides a regional centre for innovation, which will be complemented by the recently announced Investment Zone for Wrexham and Flintshire.
Clean energy industries
Offshore wind represents a significant economic opportunity for Wales. The Crown Estate has identified that the deployment of 4.5 gigawatts (GW) from its latest Leasing Round in the Celtic Sea could support over 5,000 jobs, with a further potential project pipeline of up to 12GW. HyNet CCUS (Carbon Capture Usage and Storage) has the potential to support thousands of jobs and billions in investment, including £2 billion in supply chain contracts. The National Wealth Fund will be empowered with additional funding to take on higher risk investments. It has committed over £5.8 billion into sectors such as carbon capture and green steel, helping to drive jobs and investment across Wales.
Creative industries
Cardiff City Region is home to top quality TV and film companies such as Wolf Studios Wales and Whisper, an array of filming locations, highly skilled crew, and post-production facilities. It has a thriving games industry with companies like Rocket Science, a leader in game co-development and multiplayer engineering, as well as a flourishing music scene.
Defence
The top 5 suppliers to the UK's Ministry of Defence all have a footprint in Wales. Wales’ strengths span space, cyber, drones and autonomous systems, next generation land capabilities and semiconductors. Companies such as Space Forge and Airbus Defence and Space are working in cutting-edge manufacturing, secure connectivity and cybersecurity, with regional expertise bolstered by stakeholders including the Universities of South Wales and Cardiff and Airbus’ Cyber Innovation Hub. Wales is home to construction of world-leading Ajax armoured vehicles at General Dynamics.
Digital and technologies
South Wales is home to the world's first compound semiconductor cluster, hosting globally recognised companies such as KLA, Vishay Newport, IQE, and Microchip. Wales also has a growing AI footprint, through the presence of Microsoft and Vantage Datacentres, aligned with access to major public sector data assets such as Companies House, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), the Office for National Statistics (ONS), and NHS Wales. This industrial and data advantage is underpinned by strong research and development (R&D) infrastructure. Key assets include the Cyber Innovation Hub, which supports a developing cyber cluster anchored by Thales’ Centre for Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) and Operational Technology (OT) security. The Compound Semiconductor Applications Catapult strengthens the hub by providing translational R&D, prototyping, and scale‑up support for advanced semiconductor technologies.
Financial services
Cardiff City region has an established insurance sector and an emerging fintech sector, and Admiral and Starling Bank have substantial operations in the city. It has strong local universities that bolster its local talent pool. It also has highly competitive operating costs and an established professional services ecosystem.
Life sciences
Health and Care Research Wales supports commercial studies via One Site Wales model, while the SAIL Databank enables secure population-level health data research. Wales is home to world leading research in wound healing, neurosciences, in-vitro diagnostics and medical devices. It offers centres of research excellence such as the Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC) and the Welsh Wound Innovation Centre and the Centre for NanoHealth in Swansea University. The construction of the new National Institute for Sport and Health (NISH) centre in Swansea will put Wales at the centre of advancing health, sport, and technology innovation.
Foundational industries relevant to IS-8 supply chains
Both steel and critical minerals are important foundational industries. There are strengths in steel across Wales, particularly Tata Steel’s site in Port Talbot, as well as a critical minerals cluster in South Wales.
Driving regional growth in Wales
The Industrial Strategy introduces ambitious policies to drive growth and investment across every nation and region of the UK. This is a 10-year strategy which will be a living document. We want to continue to work with the devolved governments, Corporate Joint Committees and local authorities to ensure they can drive growth across the UK.
More policies will be delivered over time, but below are some of the specific interventions in Wales that form part of our strategy.
Locally targeted investments in the IS-8 growth driving sectors
- We will establish a new Centre for Doctoral Training in Compound Semiconductors, led by Swansea University, helping to build technical expertise in strategically important areas
- A commitment has been made to a new Defence Growth Deal in a cluster in Wales, building on its major strengths in this sector
- Measures are being taken to strengthen Wales’ Investment Zones and Freeports through our new Industrial Strategy Zones Action Plan
Investment to improve connections within and between city regions and clusters
- Investing at least £445 million in Welsh rail, with improved infrastructure and connectivity driving growth across Welsh sectors and clusters
Tools to help city regions and clusters attract private investment
- A new British Business Bank Cluster Champion in Cardiff Capital Region, with deep expertise and local knowledge, will coordinate investment-readiness programmes, strengthen financial networks, and connect high-potential firms in the IS-8 to investors
- The National Wealth Fund, working with the Development Bank of Wales, is identifying and securing the right financing for investment projects in Wales
- Reforms to The Local Government Pension Scheme in England and Wales (LGPS) will strengthen its existing focus on opportunities which support local and regional growth, such as Industrial Strategy Zones
- We are continuing to support local economic growth in Wales with over £850 million in this spending review, including £211 million a year in local growth funding through to 2028/29
- We will ensure that public investment in the nations and regions of the UK is given a fair hearing. Following our review of the Green Book, our framework for considering the costs, benefits, and trade-offs of government policy interventions, we will simplify guidance and introduce ‘placed-based business cases’ to bring together the different projects needed to unlock growth and investment in a place
- We will relocate thousands of civil service roles to towns and cities across the UK to work with frontline workers and local leaders, including Cardiff
Targeted support to drive innovation
- The Local Innovation Partnerships Fund will earmark £30 million for Cardiff Capital Region. This will empower local leaders to decide how to target research investment in that place and unleash its full innovation potential