Rolls-Royce mulls shifting some engine production to US amid trade tariff scare
Aero-engine giant Rolls-Royce, which has one of its largest UK plants in Bristol, could shift some of its assembly capabilities to the US to mitigate against Donald Trump’s trade tariffs.
The group is ramping up its production in the US to try and counter the damage done by the president’s trade war with the rest of the world. According to reports, Rolls-Royce is looking at how much production can be shifted to the US.
The move is unlikely to affect engine-making at its Filton plant or its other UK sites in the short-term, but the group said it was reviewing it operations in other countries which are likely to feel the most intense economic pain as Trump’s tariffs hit on 2 April, which the President is calling “liberation day”.
However, according to The Telegraph, Rolls has not specifically ruled-out moving production away from the UK.
A Rolls spokesperson said: “We have additional capacity within some of our US operations and continuously seek to explore options to ensure that our global internal supply chain is optimised for delivery to customers in the US.”
Rolls-Royce’s Filton plant, which employs around 3,400 people, makes engines for key defence programmes such as the EJ200, which powers the RAF’s Eurofighter Typhoon, and the short-take off and vertical landing (STOVL) capability for the US-built F-35 combat aircraft.
The news comes just weeks after Rolls-Royce’s share price hit record highs on the back of stellar annual results, which showed showed underlying profit rise from £1.26bn to £2.29bn last year. The business is forecasting its 2025 adjusted operating profit to come in between £2.7bn and £2.9bn.
The firm has upgraded its mid-term operating profit targets to between £3.6bn-£3.9bn.
Tufan Erginbilgic, CEO, said Rolls-Royce is now moving “with pace and intensity”.
