£150m Rolls Royce deal protects jobs

Rolls-Royce is to invest tens of millions of pounds at civil aerospace sites in Hucknall and Annesley in a move that will safeguard around 1,000 jobs.
Eric Schultz of Rolls RoyceEric Schultz of Rolls Royce
Eric Schultz of Rolls Royce

The engine-maker has announced a £150m investment package in the UK, which will protect around 7,000 jobs across Derby, Hucknall and Annesley.

Rolls-Royce said it will not disclose how much of the £150m package will go to its sites in Hucknall and Annesley, but the figure is understood to be in excess of £25 million. The company employs 880 people in Hucknall and around 100 at Annesley.

Eric Schulz, president of Rolls Royce’s civil aerospace business, said: “The money we’re investing in Hucknall and Annesley is all about growing capacity.

Rolls RoyceRolls Royce
Rolls Royce

“Hucknall is building some important parts for our engines and as we are continuing to grow, Hucknall will have to deliver more. The same applies to Annesley.

“This investment comes at a time of unprecedented growth in Rolls-Royce. We are doubling the production of new engines at the same time as introducing three new engines to the market.”

Rolls-Royce convenor Ian Wilson, a member of the trade union Unite, said: “Hucknall makes a product that was probably going to go out onto our sub-contract network, or was going to be outsourced. This investment means Rolls-Royce is now not going to do that. The investment in Hucknall alone will be circa £25m. It’s fantastic news.”

Unite and MPs asked for a commitment from Rolls-Royce for the next generation of engines to be built in the East Midlands ever since 2014, when Dahlewitz, Germany, got the nod for a different test bed.