Siemens to build wind turbine plant in Kansas

subscribe

Germany's Siemens AG said it will build a wind turbine equipment factory in Kansas to help meet strong demand for wind power in the United States.

The facility in Hutchinson, Kansas, about 60 miles northwest of Wichita, will create about 400 jobs, Siemens Energy said in a statement.

The company said it selected Hutchinson because it is near the geographic center of the lower 48 states and has good transportation logistics.

Kansas is 12th among U.S. states for installed wind capacity, according to the American Wind Energy Association.

The new plant will manufacture nacelles, or the structures that house a wind turbine's generating components, including the gearbox, drive train and control electronics.

Construction is expected to begin in August, and the first 90-ton nacelle is expected to be shipped in December of 2010.

The factory's planned annual output is 650 nacelles, or 1,500 megawatts.

Siemens already has a U.S. wind turbine blade plant in Ft. Madison, Iowa, and a wind turbine research and development center in Colorado, the company said.

Related News

A resilient Germany is weathering the energy crunch

BERLIN - German industry and society are once again proving much more resilient and adaptable than certain people feared. Horror scenarios of a dangerous energy rationing or a massive slump in our economy have often been bandied about. But we are nowhere near that. With a challenging year just behind us, this is good news — not only for Germany, but also for Europe.

Companies and households reacted swiftly to the sharp increases in energy prices. They installed more efficient heating or production facilities, switched to alternatives and imported intermediate products. The results are encouraging: German households and businesses have reduced…

READ MORE
bc hydro sign

B.C. government freezes provincial electricity rates

READ MORE

US Automakers Will Build 30,000 Electric Vehicle Chargers

READ MORE

nigeria-electricity-crisis

Nigeria's Electricity Crisis

READ MORE

chicago wind electricity

Proposed underground power line could bring Iowa wind turbine electricity to Chicago

READ MORE