MANKATO, MN — Rolls-Royce, the British engineering company best known in the United States for jet engines and, decades ago, luxury automobiles, officially opened a new $24 million Logistics Operations Center in Mankato on Wednesday.
The company parted ways with its car business in 1998, when BMW acquired the rights to the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars brand; the Mankato operation belongs to a separate division that makes industrial backup generators.
The 250,000-square-foot facility, built next to Rolls-Royce's existing mtu power generation plant, will more than double the company's production capacity for backup power systems used at hospitals, data centers, airports and other critical infrastructure sites, according to the company.
The expansion is expected to create more than 100 local jobs, a nearly 20 percent increase to the company's Mankato workforce, making Rolls-Royce one of the largest manufacturers in the city.
About two-thirds of the new center is dedicated to logistics operations, with the remaining space supporting production, the company said. The facility includes climate-controlled logistics and assembly areas, interior loading and unloading capabilities, and room for future expansion.
Mankato Mayor Najwa Massad, State Sen. Nick Frentz and Mankato City Council Member Dennis Dieken joined Rolls-Royce Power Systems CEO Jörg Stratmann for the ribbon cutting, according to the release.
"As demand for reliable, independent energy accelerates in the U.S., this investment enables Rolls-Royce to keep pace with the market and provide mission-critical backup power generation at a greater scale than ever before," Stratmann said.
"Rolls-Royce continues to be a tremendous multi-decade partner to Mankato," Massad said. "From groundbreaking to ribbon cutting, I've witnessed this $24 million investment in our community take shape, and I look forward to seeing its long-term impact with new high-skill jobs and business opportunities."
Adam Wood, managing director of Rolls-Royce Solutions America, said the Mankato site has grown from supplying power systems to local farmers into a hub for large-scale generators used in critical infrastructure nationwide.
The generators assembled in Mankato use engines built at a Rolls-Royce facility in Aiken, South Carolina, where the company announced a separate $75 million investment last year.
The Mankato expansion, first announced in June 2025, is expected to double production capacity for backup power systems by the end of 2026. Rolls-Royce says its backup power systems already support more than 25 percent of U.S. data centers.
Catalina Valencia, executive director of business development for the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, said the investment strengthens the state's manufacturing base.
"This is about more than a new facility, it's about expanding our ecosystem of skilled trades, supply networks, and production capabilities, keeping Minnesota attractive and competitive for the future," Valencia said.
Rolls-Royce has invested more than $1.5 billion in the U.S. over the past decade and employs more than 5,000 people across 34 locations in 26 states, according to the company.
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