Chennai: Aircraft manufacturer Airbus is set to begin delivering new aircraft to major Indian airlines, with over half powered by Rolls-Royce engines. This development is part of a wider trade and investment boost following the signing of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between India and the UK, the UK government announced.
Rolls-Royce plc, which has a joint venture with India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), is expanding its operations through International Aerospace Manufacturing Private Ltd.
According to a UK government statement issued after the CETA signing on Thursday, these aircraft deliveries are part of approximately £5 billion in contracts recently secured with India.
The agreement, signed by Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds, took place in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his UK counterpart Keir Starmer.
The UK government emphasized that the deal will significantly reduce tariffs in key sectors: aerospace (from as high as 11% to 0%), automobiles (from up to 110% to 10% under a quota), and electrical machinery (from up to 22% to either 0% or a 50% reduction).
Prime Minister Modi called the trade agreement “a blueprint for shared prosperity,” noting that it will improve access for Indian goods such as textiles, footwear, jewellery, seafood, and engineering products in the UK. It will also unlock new opportunities for Indian agriculture and the processed food industry.
“UK-made products such as medical devices and aerospace components will become more accessible and affordable for Indian consumers and industries,” Modi added.
Prime Minister Starmer described the agreement as “a major win for Britain,” expected to create thousands of jobs and boost business growth across the UK. According to the deal, India’s average tariff on UK goods will drop from 15 pc to just 3pc, improving market access for British exporters in sectors ranging from beverages and cosmetics to automobiles and healthcare.
The agreement has also paved the way for significant UK investment in India and vice versa, across sectors including energy, AI, pharmaceuticals, digital innovation, and manufacturing.
Croda is investing over £50 million in setting up a Greenfield speciality chemicals plant at Dahej in Gujarat and the group already operates a world class manufacturing site near Mumbai.
Northern Ireland-based Lakeland Dairies Foodservice, which currently exports its dairy products to 80+ countries worldwide, announces its entry into the Indian market with its flagship product, ‘Millac Gold’, through their Indian Distribution partners ‘Euro Foods Pvt’. The projected export value for 5 years are in excess of £5 million for the Millac brand from the United Kingdom to India.
BAPIO Training Academy, a leading organisation in Indo-UK healthcare collaboration has signed business partnerships worth £13 million over 5 years, with multiple Indian hospitals and healthcare providers to develop education, training and capacity building programme for doctors and allied healthcare worker(s) and support the recruitment of over 400 doctors and allied health workers for the UK.
Buro Happold is expanding rapidly in India and providing world-class infrastructure consultancy to support India’s development, and this expansion is expected to generate employment for approximately 700 people by investing £5mn over the next 3 yrs.
Poweronics UK has signed a Transfer of Technology agreement with Elventive Tech Pvt Ltd worth £3 million for supplying technology for manufacturing of specialised electronic “High Voltage Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) Gate Driver” control cards in India.
Kent-based Fitworld Company UK Ltd. is launching its premium BRITPRO London nutraceutical and sports supplement range in India, following a £1.94 million export win spread over next 5 years.
Anpario, a UK based specialist in natural feed additives, is actively expanding its presence in the Indian animal and aquaculture market which led to business of £2 million.
RedoQ has established its largest operation outside of UK in Kolkata in Jan 2025 with a plan to invest £23.8 million and projected revenue of £25.4 million over the next 5 years.
Bikal Technologies Partners with Yotta Data Services to Accelerate Global AI Cloud Adoption and develop Global AI capabilities for Asia’s Largest Tier IV Data Centre (2nd Largest Tier IV Data Center in the World). Bikal Technologies has confirmed Export wins of £21.10 million and ODI win of £4.9 million from India totalling £26 million over the next 5 years from this project.
ARUP, a global leader in aviation, has secured contracts worth £2 million from Indian airport operators for benchmarking, design standards and optimisation services.
Water Offsets UK has set up a JV company with an Indian company to deliver water conservation and recycling technologies contributing to India’s water security and is projected wins of around £56.4 million over the next five years. The JV will have operational offices in India and the United Kingdom.
Thor Specialities secured business deals worth £ 45 million for supplying performance chemicals to Indian Paints and Coatings Industry.
SmartViz Limited is bringing its award winning IoT and AI-powered Realtime Building Analytics and Digital Twin platform to make India’s large infrastructure projects more efficient and sustainable. Working on multiple projects within the Smart Buildings and Smart Cities areas, the company has projected wins worth £5.6 million in the next 3 years.
Helical Tech has confirmed £ 5.72 million worth new ODI investment to expand its Pune manufacturing facility to make India it’s global supply base.
Otter Group announces a £2 million ODI to expand its India facility—strengthening its global manufacturing footprint, boosting supply chain resilience, and accelerating growth across key mobility sectors.
UPL, a leading provider of sustainable agricultural solutions and services will create 150 agricultural R&D apprenticeships over three years in partnership with Harper Adams University in Telford, while also investing £2.5m over 5 years towards the Oxford-India Centre for Sustainable Development at Somerville College, the University of Oxford.
miths Detection sees the overall revenue projection of over £50 million in over next 3 years in Indian aviation security, ports and borders and critical infrastructure market from various customers and is promoting the globally proven aviation security screening technologies like Checkpoint CT for the hand baggage screening at airports in Indian market for highest standards of safety and security, passenger convenience and operational efficiency of airports.
