Rolls-Royce breaking ground on Monday

Construction will begin Monday on the new Rolls-Royce aerospace manufacturing facility in Prince George County.

Governor Tim Kaine and James M. Guyette, president & CEO Rolls-Royce North America, will be on hand to celebrate the groundbreaking at an event that will feature a product showcase, and weather permitting, an aircraft fly in and tour.

Clearing and grading of the 60-acre site was completed over the summer. The Haskell Company of Jacksonville-Florida was selected as lead contractor in late August.

The first phase of construction at the 1,000-acre complex, dubbed Crosspointe, is a facility for producing jet engine compents. That facility will support around 140 jobs, but as the campus expands to include assembling and testing facilities the number of jobs created will be around 500, according to Rolls-Royce.

The initial phase represents an investment of $100 million, and will approach $500 million as all work is completed.

Crosspointe will manufacture, assemble and test a range of aerospace components and products. The first phase of work – component manufacturing — is likely to support over 140 jobs and the company expects future growth in Virginia to generate roughly 500 new jobs in the coming years. Initial Rolls-Royce investment in this site will exceed $100 million. Over time, the company anticipates additional investment of up to $500 million in Virginia.