Siemens Energy will invest USD150 million to expand its transformer manufacturing operations in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The shortage of grid and transmission equipment in the USA is no secret and has been a feature of various HLPFI reports over the past few years. Today, only 20 percent of US large power transformer demand is met by domestic supply with lead times of up to five years, said Siemens Energy.
Tim Holt, member of the executive board for Siemens Energy, said: “The US energy transition is in full swing, with USD3.9 billion pledged to expand and update the US grid within the next two years. However, renewable projects and grid expansion can only happen with the availability of transformers. The US market today is mostly served by the Americas and Europe, but as global demand for this critical technology increases, we see the long-term potential to increase our US footprint, building on our long-standing presence in North Carolina where we’ve had operations since 1969.”
Siemens Energy referenced studies that predict that 25 percent of global renewable projects are in jeopardy due to long transformer lead times, supply chain bottlenecks and lack of global transformer production.
