Firm Drops Plans to Manufacture Offshore Wind Turbines in Virginia

November 15, 2023 by Dan McCue
Firm Drops Plans to Manufacture Offshore Wind Turbines in Virginia
(Siemens Gamesa photo)

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Siemens Gamesa, the German-Spanish wind engineering company, will not be building a planned $200 million factory to manufacture offshore wind turbine blades in Virginia after all.

The massive facility, which had been projected to create more than 300 jobs, was a key component of the state’s aspirations to become a critical hub for offshore wind projects up and down the Atlantic coast.

But the firm said the move was part of a restructuring of its wind turbine business after it experienced “unexpected” and “serious” financial losses and agreed to a rescue plan led by the German government.

“In a year of unprecedented challenges, Siemens Energy showed that turnarounds are achievable, with the businesses, excluding wind, meeting or exceeding their full-year targets,” said Chief Executive Christian Bruch during a press conference in Munich, Germany, on Wednesday.

During that press conference, Bruch announced Siemens Energy, the clean energy portion of the business group, had a full-year net loss of $4.9 billion.

Siemens has said it doesn’t expect the company’s wind business — buffeted by inflation, raised interest rates and supply chain issues — to return to profitability until 2026.

Overall, the company expects its other divisions to return to profitability next year. 

“We are seeing progress in dealing with the issues at Siemens Gamesa, and I am encouraged that the data from the installed onshore turbines confirm our previous findings,” Bruch said. “Our strong balance sheet remains a top priority, and Siemens Energy’s vital role in the energy transition will continue to drive our growth and success in the years ahead.”

As for the now abandoned plan to build a manufacturing plant in Virginia, Siemens Gamesa has officially offered very little in the way of explanation for its decision, saying only that it could not meet “development milestones.”

But the company is far from alone in confronting difficulties in the U.S. offshore wind market.

Danish energy developer Orsted recently abandoned plans for two large offshore wind power projects off the coast of New Jersey, citing the same issues that doomed the Virginia manufacturing facility.

And then there’s the Park City Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts, which Avangrid, a subsidiary of Spanish utility company Iberdrola, scrapped after several Connecticut utilities opted out of a long-term power purchase agreement.

Despite Siemens Gamesa’s decision, construction of Dominion Energy’s 176-turbine wind farm off the coast of Virginia Beach is expected to continue at full tilt. 

That’s because its turbines are being manufactured in Siemens Gamesa facilities in Europe.

It was then-Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam who in 2021 announced that Siemens Gamesa would join Dominion Energy and Orsted in developing an offshore wind manufacturing hub at the Port of Virginia in Portsmouth, Virginia. 

Northam said at the time Siemens Gamesa’s blade finishing facility would represent a $200 million investment and would create 300 new jobs.

Northam’s successor, Gov. Glenn Youngkin, has yet to comment on Siemens Gamesa’s decision.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue

 

A+
a-
  • offshore wind
  • Siemens Gamesa
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    Renewable Energy

    July 15, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    Trump Speaks at Inaugural Energy and Innovation Summit in Pittsburgh

    WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump traveled to Pittsburgh on Tuesday to tout tens of billions of dollars of energy and... Read More

    WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump traveled to Pittsburgh on Tuesday to tout tens of billions of dollars of energy and technology investments at Pennsylvania's inaugural Energy and Innovation Summit. “This is a really triumphant day for the people of the commonwealth and the United States of... Read More

    July 11, 2025
    by Dan McCue
    New Dems Roundtable Focuses on ‘Big Bill’s’ Impact on Clean Energy

    WASHINGTON — Members of the New Democrat Coalition traveled to Garner, North Carolina, on Friday to speak with voters about... Read More

    WASHINGTON — Members of the New Democrat Coalition traveled to Garner, North Carolina, on Friday to speak with voters about why they believe the sweeping domestic policy package their Republican colleagues passed last week will stymie the growth of a new, clean energy economy. The event... Read More

    With Sanctions Lifted, Syria Looks to Solar Power as More Than a Patchwork Fix to Its Energy Crisis

    DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Abdulrazak al-Jenan swept the dust off his solar panel on his apartment roof overlooking Damascus. Syria's... Read More

    DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Abdulrazak al-Jenan swept the dust off his solar panel on his apartment roof overlooking Damascus. Syria's largest city was mostly pitch-black, the few speckles of light coming from the other households able to afford solar panels, batteries, or private generators. Al-Jenan went... Read More

    A Georgia Town That Solidly Backed Trump Could Fall Victim to Green Energy Cuts

    CARTERSVILLE, Ga. (AP) — When two South Korean companies announced a multibillion-dollar investment to build solar panel and electric battery factories in northwest Georgia,... Read More

    CARTERSVILLE, Ga. (AP) — When two South Korean companies announced a multibillion-dollar investment to build solar panel and electric battery factories in northwest Georgia, federal subsidies helped close a deal to diversify the local economy. The factories promised thousands of new jobs, transforming the manufacturing base in Cartersville, once a... Read More

    June 27, 2025
    by Beth McCue
    The Sun Is Powering 15,000 Kentucky Homes

    LYON COUNTY, Ky. — The new 86-megawatt Ashwood Solar project in Lyon County, Kentucky, will provide enough renewable energy to... Read More

    LYON COUNTY, Ky. — The new 86-megawatt Ashwood Solar project in Lyon County, Kentucky, will provide enough renewable energy to power over 15,000 customers of the Kentucky Municipal Energy Agency. The official ribbon-cutting ceremony for Ashwood Solar took place on June 25. This significant event marked... Read More

    June 26, 2025
    by Cameron Glymph
    Agilitas Energy Acquires Hydropower Projects in West Virginia and Maryland

    WAKEFIELD, Mass. — The tide is turning in favor of hydropower.  The recent acquisition by Agilitas Energy of the 30-megawatt... Read More

    WAKEFIELD, Mass. — The tide is turning in favor of hydropower.  The recent acquisition by Agilitas Energy of the 30-megawatt Tygart Hydropower Project in Grafton, West Virginia, and the 14-megawatt Jennings Randolph Hydropower Project in Garrett County, Maryland, marks the company’s entry into the market. Combined,... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top