The UK government and Rolls-Royce announced plans for a joint £2.5 billion, 10-year aircraft-engine research program expected to support 3,300 jobs by the end of 2029, while helping the company pursue future single-aisle aircraft work.
Announced Oct. 28, the plan covers gas-turbine technology for civil and defense aircraft, including an engine demonstrator. The government identified Derby, the Midlands and Bristol as locations for engineering skills development and testing capabilities.
The £2.5 billion figure covers the joint program. Neither side has disclosed how the costs will be divided, though Rolls-Royce expects to invest significantly more than the government across the narrowbody effort.
The government said it had made no new grants under the agreement. Future public support remains subject to legal, affordability and value-for-money reviews, government approval and subsidy-control checks. The Budget document says the funding has not been contracted.
The program is expected to support jobs at Rolls-Royce and its supply-chain partners. The company says winning an engine position on a future narrowbody aircraft could lead to tens of thousands of additional jobs. It estimates that securing a UK engine position could also bring billions of pounds in further UK investment and add £120 billion to the economy over the program’s lifetime. That estimate depends on selection by aircraft makers; Rolls-Royce did not detail its calculation in the announcement.
Rolls-Royce expects aircraft manufacturers to choose engine suppliers in the coming years. The company says the next generation of single-aisle planes is expected to enter commercial service in the mid-to-late 2030s.
Reuters reported that Rolls-Royce left the narrowbody engine market in 2012, when it sold its stake in the International Aero Engines consortium to Pratt & Whitney. Reuters also reported that CFM International, a joint venture between GE Aerospace and Safran, and Pratt & Whitney dominate the segment.
