A new 254,000 sq ft drone manufacturing facility will open in the English town of Swindon in 2026 as part of a UK expansion from European defence tech group Tekever.
The Lisbon-headquartered firm already has a handful of operating locations in the UK, with the new Swindon site said to be the company’s largest in the UK to date.
The Swindon site will be the company’s fourth in the UK and is projected to create as many as 1,000 jobs.
According to Tekever, the new factory will produce the company’s AR3 autonomous unmanned aerial system (UAS) drones and for the first time bring production of its AR5 UAS drones to the UK.
The Portuguese defence tech company has been a significant manufacturing partner of the UK and its allies in recent years, with the British government having bought £270m of Tekever drones in support of Ukrainian forces.
Commenting on the announcement, Minister of Defence John Healey said: “This new factory is a clear demonstration that this government is making defence an engine for growth across the UK.
“Tekever’s expansion will bring high-skilled jobs and world-leading drone manufacturing to Swindon, while strengthening defence supply chains. By backing Britain’s defence industry, we strengthen both our economy and national security.”
