Rolls-Royce sued in India: ‘UK flagship as source of pride and constant annoyance’

TUfan Erginbilgich found his mission. He arrived at the head of Rolls-Royce in January, he assured in an interview in May. Financial TimesThat was his ambition “Creating a business no one worries about”. A curious goal for the boss of the flagship of British mechanics, but not so surprising when you look at the history of this company, whose name will be Coca-Cola, the most famous brand in the world.

The latest spate of lawsuits, initiated by the police and Indian judiciary, was announced on Monday, May 29. The company is accused of “criminal conspiracy” with its accomplice British Aerospace, which intended “Cheating Government of India” In a giant contract between 2003 and 2012 for the production and supply of Hawk fighter jets equipped with Rolls-Royce engines.

An old story that reflects the company’s conviction in 2017 by Britain’s Serious Fraud Office for acts of corruption and fraud spanning nearly thirty years in the United Kingdom. This time too, the leaders of that time promised in their hearts that they would not be caught there again.

A big spring cleaning

Current leaders are more comfortable doing this today in front of their Indian prosecutors because they were not in charge at the time. In fact, it’s the perfect spring cleaning for the world’s giant of aircraft, boat or train engines. Appointed to turn around the Covid-19-hit company, Tufan Erginbilgić, a British-Turkish former oil executive at BP, has issued scathing comments about the management of his predecessors.

During one of the first visits to the factory, he compared the company to A “Platform on Fire”. He then assured me that he had never seen a company so badly run, in particular its diesel and gas engine division. As a result, he forced all of the division’s chiefs to resign and called in BP’s lieutenants to straighten out the finances and lead the company’s transformation, which will see 9,000 employees leave.

Energy will be needed to stabilize the company, which has seen many vicissitudes since its creation by Henry Royce in 1906. It was nationalized in 1971, its profitable but small car division was sold, then the company was privatized again in 1987. Rolls-Royce is the pride of the United Kingdom, one of its last bastions of industrial excellence and a constant source of irritation. . Crown baby scary.