Rolls-Royce today welcomed the announcement by the UK Government of a national endeavour to secure the future of the UK’s thriving defence and civil nuclear industry, with a package of investment in skills, jobs and communities.
Additionally, Rolls-Royce welcomed the launch of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise Command Paper, which was announced at the same time. This is a comprehensive, in-depth statement of UK nuclear policy and programmes and, for the first time, it sets out the full scale of the UK’s defence nuclear activity.
Rolls-Royce is playing a pivotal role in supporting growth in the nuclear industry and the drive to boost nuclear expertise in the UK.
To meet the growth in demand from the Royal Navy, which includes AUKUS delivery commitments, it plans to double the size of the Rolls-Royce Submarines site in Raynesway, Derby, creating over 1,000 highly-skilled jobs.
To support preparation for AUKUS and to meet the additional commitments to the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD), Rolls-Royce also announced the opening of two satellite offices in Glasgow and Cardiff. The locations were selected to help access the skilled talent pools in both regions, with more than 100 jobs being created in each city.
To further ensure a steady pipeline of future talent into the industry, Rolls-Royce opened a new Nuclear Skills Academy in Derby in 2022. It will provide 200 apprenticeships each year for at least the next decade.
Rolls-Royce is also at the forefront of additional nuclear development and innovation. The Novel Nuclear team are looking to the future for revolutionary new technology including providing reliable power systems with extremely long-life spans, and nuclear micro-reactors as a self-contained and power dense solution in space and on land.