Siemens to build wind turbine plant in Kansas

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.