Siemens Gamesa set to develop offshore wind turbine blade facility in the U.S.

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE, Zamudio, Spain) held a launch ceremony in Virginia for what the company says will be the first offshore wind turbine blade facility in the U.S. Siemens Gamesa says this is also the first commitment by a global offshore wind turbine manufacturer in a U.S.-based supply chain.

Siemens Gamesa will develop more than 80 acres at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal in Portsmouth, Va., U.S., upon execution of a firm order for the 2.6-gigawatt (GW) Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Commercial Project with Dominion Energy (Lebanon, Ohio, U.S.). The facility will perform the finishing of Siemens Gamesa Offshore IntegralBlades. The facility is expected to create approximately 260 jobs once fully operational, and the company also intends to create around 50 service jobs to provide operations and maintenance services for the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Commercial Project. Siemens Gamesa says it will look to expand the facility if awarded future projects in the region, creating additional jobs in the future.

Furthermore, Siemens Gamesa entered a land lease agreement with the Virginia Port Authority, and once operational, the facility is intended to support deliveries to the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Commercial Project.

“As Congress considers taking historic action on climate, this facility evidences that offshore wind can create significant new manufacturing activity and quality jobs to U.S. communities,” says Steve Dayney, Siemens Gamesa’s head of offshore North America. “We are hopeful this commitment will lead to further action by federal and state policy makers to establish policies to provide long-term certainty and help sustain the competitiveness of this facility in the global marketplace for decades to come.”

The Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Commercial Project preferred supplier agreement remains subject to certain conditions including Dominion Energy’s final investment decision, governmental permitting and other required approvals. The final number of SG 14-222 DD offshore wind turbines intended to be used remains to be determined.