Rolls Royce Submarines brings jobs to Glasgow for Dreadnought and AUKUS programmes
An artist’s impression of the new AUKUS SSN which will be supported by the Glasgow office. (Picture: MoD/Crown copyright)
Rolls Royce opens new Scottish office but the MoD foots the bill.
Rolls-Royce Submarines has opened a new office in Glasgow, Scotland, which the company claimed would create 120 new jobs as part of its work supporting the Dreadnought and AUKUS SSN programmes.
Notably funded not by Rolls Royce itself, but by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), the office, at Glasgow’s Airport Business Park, will focus on developing electrical controls and instrumentation, as well as cybersecurity solutions.
Rolls Royce Submarines currently designs, manufactures and provides in-service support to the pressurised water reactors that power every boat in the Royal Navy’s submarine fleet, employing 5,000 people across its business.
Related Articles
Royal Navy’s new Dreadnought SSBNs to be equipped with OSI’s ECPINS
Australian navy and industry to carry out maintenance on USN nuclear submarine as part of AUKUS
AUKUS nations lay out plans for joint submarine development
In March 2023, the company confirmed that it would provide all the nuclear reactor plants to power new attack submarines as part of the trilateral AUKUS agreement between Australia, the UK and US. It will also support the existing Astute and Dreadnought boat build programmes, delivering reactor plant and associated components.
Opening the new office, Maria Eagle, UK minister for defence procurement and industry, said the investment would be delivered “alongside an important industry partnership” and would “support high-skilled jobs and economic growth that will benefit our prosperity and security for decades to come”.
Ian Murray, UK secretary of state for Scotland, added that the new office would bolster Scotland’s role in the UK defence sector, alongside the Royal Navy’s submarine fleet at the Clyde naval base, but that it would also form a part of the defence landscape of Scotland in economic terms, “with the MoD spending around £2 billion (US$2.5 billion) annually with the defence industry here, directly supporting [more than] 11,000 jobs”.
The UK’s nuclear deterrent is currently housed on Vanguard-class submarines in Scotland, to which the Dreadnought-class are intended to be the successor. Similarly, the AUKUS SSNs are eventually expected to take the place of the Astute-class boats (which themselves are still in active production).
The Dreadnought-class boats will be built by BAE Systems at its Barrow shipyard, which recently suffered “a significant fire”, although production went on unhindered.
The Dreadnought-class boats are due to enter service in the 2030s, with deliveries being completed in the same decade at an initial expected cost of $42 billion.
Related Programmes in Defence Insight
Dreadnought Class (Successor Programme) (1-4) [UK]
AUKUS-SSNs/SSN(R) Astute Replacement Programme [UK]
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
![US Navy seeks new sensors for the CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopter]()
US Navy seeks new sensors for the CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopter
The US Navy intends to publish a draft request for proposals in Q2 2026 and conduct an open competition for the supply of new electro-optical and infrared capabilities for the CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter.
-
![NATO naval exercises map out future USV requirements but raise questions on acquisition]()
NATO naval exercises map out future USV requirements but raise questions on acquisition
Uncrewed surface vessels have shifted from a desirable capability to a critical one for navies. But should these systems be bought outright, rented as a service or rapidly built using commercial off-the-shelf components?
-
![New UK-Norway pact covers warship, missile and autonomous system collaboration]()
New UK-Norway pact covers warship, missile and autonomous system collaboration
The Lunna House Agreement represents multiple opportunities for cooperation between the two navies, and follows on from last year’s declaration of a joint strategic partnership between the countries.
-
![How will the Canadian Coast Guard’s transfer to the DND umbrella affect its capabilities?]()
How will the Canadian Coast Guard’s transfer to the DND umbrella affect its capabilities?
By joining the defence department, the coast guard will need to acquire new solutions and adapt its in-service capabilities to ensure interoperability with the Canadian Armed Forces.
