The UK government has awarded Rolls-Royce a £9 billion ($11 billion) eight-year contract to design, manufacture, and support nuclear reactors for its submarine fleet, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) announced on Friday.
The contract aims to strengthen the Royal Navy’s continuous at-sea deterrent and support the AUKUS defence pact with the United States and Australia.
The deal follows U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent calls for NATO members, including Britain, to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP. The UK government has committed to raising defence spending to 2.5% of GDP but has not specified a timeline.
Further details are expected in the Strategic Defence Review, set for publication in the spring, according to Defence Minister John Healey.
Healey said the contract, known as Unity, consolidates multiple agreements into a single deal, saving £400 million over eight years. The contract will also support work on the Dreadnought class of nuclear submarines currently being built by BAE Systems.
Unity is expected to create 1,000 new jobs and safeguard 4,000 existing positions, primarily at Rolls-Royce’s nuclear reactor production facility in Derby, central England. Healey described the contract as a boost to British jobs and the economy, emphasizing its role in driving economic growth through defence investments.
This announcement comes amid heightened tensions with Russia, highlighted by a recent UK claim of a Russian spy ship in British waters.
