Rolls-Royce and Mubadala Development Company, the Abu Dhabi-based investment and development organisation, have announced further details of a new Approved Maintenance Center (AMC) in the Emirate and confirmed plans for a manufacturing facility that will produce aero-engine components.

The unit will be the second AMC in which Rolls-Royce does not hold an equity stake. The first, Delta TechOps, was announced in October 2015.

Mubadala will create a purpose-built facility that will carry out work on the Trent XWB. The Middle East region is forecast to have one of the world’s largest concentrations of Trent XWB engines, including the 62 A350s to be operated by Etihad Airways.

Mubadala also announced that it will open a new manufacturing centre to deliver parts for the Trent engine family, including the Rolls-Royce Trent XWB. This new manufacturing centre will complement the existing disc manufacturing investment that Rolls-Royce has previously made in Washington, UK and Crosspointe, U.S.

This latest announcement follows the Strategic Framework Agreement signed at the Dubai Airshow in November 2013 to establish the Emirate of Abu Dhabi as a key member of Rolls-Royce's global network for maintenance and manufacturing.

The AMC will service up to 150 engines a year in a new facility located at the Nibras Al Ain Aerospace Park, which is expected to be operational in 2021. The AMC agreement will be finalised in the second half of 2016, and construction of the AMC facility is expected to begin as early as 2017.

The manufacturing center at the same site will produce discs for the Trent XWB, with capability to make similar parts for other Trent engine types. It is expected to start operations in 2018. Rolls-Royce and Mubadala have also reached agreements to enter into a number of manufacturing development projects to support Mubadala’s goal to become a Tier 1 aerospace industry supplier.

In related news, Mubadala announced a new joint venture with Belgian chemical giant Solvay. Located in the centre of Abu Dhabi’s growing aerospace hub, the JV is described as the first manufacturer in the UAE and the fourth worldwide of prepreg composite materials. The JV will supply prepreg composite materials for the empennage and floor beams of the 777X beginning in 2021.