The London Science Museum has indicated that it plans to continue its association with the Adani Group despite a grim view of the company, reported Moneycontrol. Gautam Adani had signed a sponsorship deal with the Science Museum in 2021 for a new cutting-edge gallery, which is set to open this year.
Adani had announced a commitment of $70 billion to 'energy transition via solar, wind, and hydrogen' during the Global Investment Summit in London in October 2021. At this time, Adani's sponsorship with the Science Museum was made public, followed by severe criticism from activists and academics who questioned the Science Museum for taking money from a company that earned significant revenue from coal plants.
There were also protests and boycotts against this new partnership, and it is also claimed that after the signing of the deal, two trustees, Jo Foster and Hannah Fry from the board had to resign. During this time the London museum had openly come out and refuted the claims that they felt were false. The Science Museum remained clear that it relied on external funding to carry on its work in educating the world on science and the environment.
This support comes days after the UK media reported the resignation of Lord Jo Johnson, a former UK cabinet minister and the brother of Boris Johnson, from the board of an investment bank linked to the Adani Group. This support extended by the Museum will go a long way for the Adani Group, as prominent business figures are closely tracking the company due to the possible impacts on the Indian economy and its expanding presence in the UK. The company also has a vast global presence in coal mines, ports, airports, and food processing.
Chevening-Adani Scholarship programme
In addition to this, the company in May 2022 announced a scholarship with the Commonwealth Development Office as part of the UK-India artificial intelligence collaboration. This Chevening-Adani Scholarship programme would support 15 Indian students to take AI master's courses in the UK. This announcement was made at the time when Boris Johnson met Adani in Ahmedabad.
Adani vs Hindenburg
The Adani Group has been facing one hurdle after another since US-based short seller Hindenburg Research released the report accusing Adani of stock manipulation. The share price of Adani Enterprises went down by 60 per cent in the last month, and in addition to that, the company also had to cancel its FPO despite being fully subscribed. The tug of war between Hindenburg and Adani has also led to many questions in the Indian Parliament, with ministers causing a ruckus and pushing for answers. Despite clarification from the government and the company, investors are still hesitant to trust and invest in the company.
