Rolls-Royce reports to the SFO

Rolls-Royce, the global power systems company, has passed information to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) relating to concerns about bribery and corruption involving intermediaries in overseas markets.

This follows a request for information from the SFO about allegations of malpractice in Indonesia and China. Investigations by Rolls-Royce have identified matters of concern in these, and in other overseas markets.

The consequence of these disclosures will be decided by the regulatory authorities. It is too early to predict the outcomes, but these could include the prosecution of individuals and of the company. We will cooperate fully.

Rolls-Royce has significantly strengthened its compliance procedures in recent years, including a new Global Ethics Code and a new Intermediaries Policy. It has also expanded the Compliance function. As a further measure, Rolls-Royce will appoint an independent senior figure who will lead a review of current procedures and report to the Ethics Committee of the Board.

John Rishton, Rolls-Royce Chief Executive, said:

“I want to make it crystal clear that neither I nor the Board will tolerate improper business conduct of any sort and will take all necessary action to ensure compliance. This is a company with exceptional prospects and I will not accept any behaviour that undermines its future success”.

1. Rolls-Royce is a world-leading provider of power systems and services for use on land, at sea and in the air, and has established a strong position in global markets - civil aerospace, defence aerospace, marine and energy.
2. As a result of this strategy, Rolls-Royce has a broad customer base comprising more than 500 airlines, 4,000 corporate and utility aircraft and helicopter operators, 160 armed forces, more than 4,000 marine customers, including 70 navies, and energy customers in more than 80 countries.
3. Annual underlying revenues were £11.3 billion in 2011, of which more than half came from the provision of services. The firm and announced order book stood at £62.2 billion at 31 December 2011, providing visibility of future levels of activity.
4. Rolls-Royce employs over 40,000 people in offices, manufacturing and service facilities in over 50 countries. Over 11,000 of these employees are engineers.
5. In 2011, Rolls-Royce invested £908 million on research and development, two thirds of which had the objective of further improving the environmental performance of its products, in particular reducing emissions.
6. Rolls-Royce supports a global network of 28 University Technology Centres, which connect the company’s engineers with the forefront of scientific research.
7. The Group has a strong commitment to apprentice and graduate recruitment and to further developing employee skills.