Rolls-Royce has announced a list of six potential locations for its first factory, with Carlisle amongst the top choices.
The factory will be its largest and most complex facility as well as the first of three that will manufacture ‘heavy vessels’ for its Small Modular Reactor (SMR) power station.
If Carlisle is selected, the new factory would be situated and built in Kingmoor Park.
The other locations of the final shortlisted sites include North East, Richmond in North Yorkshire, Deeside in Wales, Ferrybridge in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.
Jo Lappin, Chief Executive at the Cumbria LEP, said: “It is really welcome news that Kingmoor Park in Carlisle has been selected by Rolls Royce SMR as one of the six shortlisted sites for their manufacturing facility.
“In nominating the site the LEP recognised the excellent credentials of the site and of Cumbria, more generally, to host the Heavy Pressure Vessel and other manufacturing facilities. Currently, advanced manufacturing makes up 21% of our economy, which is 100% more concentrated than the national average, with much higher productivity levels.”
The shortlist was selected against a clear set of criteria, picked from over 100 submissions from Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) and development agencies who suggested sites across the UK where the Rolls-Royce SMR factories could be located.
Neil McIntyre, Managing Director at Kingmoor Park in Carlisle, said: “Securing this development would bring investment and more highly-skilled jobs to Cumbria, complementing the existing nuclear centre of excellence.
“It’s further evidence that clean energy generation will be a major part of Cumbria’s economic success in the decades to come. We’ll continue to put forward the best case we can to bring this facility to Carlisle.”
