<div id="readability-page-1">British industrial conglomerate Rolls-Royce is strengthening its presence in China via a newly launched engine maintenance joint venture with Air China, as domestic demand for commercial air travel grows. The joint venture, Beijing Aero Engine Services (BAESL), which became operational in December, provides engine maintenance services for Chinese airlines. The company said it planned to leverage this partnership to serve overseas carriers in future. “China is an important market for Rolls-Royce, and our confidence and investment conviction in China remain unchanged,” said Liu Xiaowei, senior vice-president for civil aerospace customers at Rolls-Royce, in a briefing in Beijing on Monday. Nearly 60 per cent of China’s widebody aircraft fleet has Rolls-Royce engines, he said, adding that “unlike aircraft manufacturers, aero-engine makers rely heavily on flying hours and the after-sales market”.  As demand for after-sales services increases, the facility will be capable of handling up to 250 shop visits per year at full capacity – a level expected to be reached in the mid-2030s. More than 500 aircraft in service in the Greater China region have Rolls-Royce engines. The company also has more than 100 confirmed orders on its books, with China accounting for a fifth of its global deliveries of all Trent engines. Last year, flying hours of large Rolls-Royce engines globally climbed 11 per cent above the pre-pandemic level in 2019, fuelling a corresponding rise in revenue and stronger maintenance demand. The group projected that by 2028, total engine flying hours would jump by 30 to 40 per cent from 2019 levels. Rolls-Royce said that BAESL – as one of the four major joint venture maintenance centres in its global network – marked a major step towards significantly increasing its global maintenance, repair and overhaul capacity by 2030, and a breakthrough for China in the high-end aircraft-engine maintenance sector. Over the next 20 years, Chinese airlines were expected to acquire 9,570 aircraft to meet growing commercial air travel demand, according to a forecast by European aircraft manufacturer Airbus in January. Airbus forecast that the global aviation after-sales service market was shifting distinctly eastwards, with China poised to become the world’s largest market by value. In China, the sector was predicted to expand to US$63.8 billion by 2044 from US$24.8 billion in 2025, it said. Meanwhile, Rolls-Royce said its overall supply chain capabilities had seen substantial improvement. Amid lingering geopolitical tensions, its supply chain partners and joint ventures in China consistently delivered high-quality products and helped the company improve resilience, increase efficiency, reduce costs and shorten lead times, it said. Last year, Rolls-Royce’s component procurement from China achieved double-digit year-on-year growth. Over the last few years, it has steadily expanded its purchasing volume in China, with sourced components growing in product complexity and portfolio breadth. </div>

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<p>Rolls-Royce is enhancing its presence in China through a joint venture with Air China, named Beijing Aero Engine Services (BAESL), which began operations in December. This venture aims to provide engine maintenance services for Chinese airlines, with plans to expand to overseas carriers. Rolls-Royce holds a significant share of China's widebody aircraft fleet and anticipates a rise in demand for after-sales services. The company projects a 30-40% increase in engine flying hours by 2028, and BAESL is expected to boost its global maintenance capacity by 2030, marking a significant advancement in China's aircraft-engine maintenance sector.</p>

Rolls-Royce boosts China presence with engine maintenance venture