Siemens Gamesa is set to “massively expand” its nacelle manufacturing activities, with plans to triple the size of its offshore nacelle plant in Taichung, Taiwan to around 90,000 square metres.
The new factory setup will have dedicated production lines for hub assembly, nacelle backend assembly, and final nacelle assembly including generator-related work. Construction work on the expansion started in September 2022.
The company said that the “large production depth opens up a compelling opportunity for a vast range of Taiwanese suppliers” to feed more than 10,000 components directly to the factory.
With a “substantial annual production capacity”, the factory is intended to deliver locally made nacelles for the 1,044 MW Hai Long offshore wind power projects, future projects from Taiwan’s Round 3 offshore wind power auctions, and other projects in the Asia-Pacific region.
Assembly of SG 14-222 DD offshore turbine nacelles at the factory is planned to begin in the second quarter of calendar year 2024.
The company said the expansion will also more than triple the number of Siemens Gamesa employees working locally.
Beginning in October 2022, Siemens Gamesa will also send Taiwanese nacelle technicians to be trained in Europe in a bid to strengthen the local Taiwanese workforce.
The first 21 people, a combination of 15 hourly and six salaried colleagues, will spend 15 months in total abroad. More Taiwanese colleagues will follow as the new factory’s staffing needs grow.
The Taiwanese employees will spend three months at Siemens Gamesa’s offshore wind turbine factory in Brande, Denmark, where they will learn about manufacturing processes for a variety of Siemens Gamesa offshore wind turbines.
Next, they will spend all of 2023 receiving on-the-job training working alongside experienced nacelle assembly colleagues at the Siemens Gamesa offshore nacelle factory in Cuxhaven, Germany.
Siemens Gamesa broke the news of the expansion today during a ceremony to mark the company’s “long-term commitment” to growing Taiwan as its offshore wind power hub for the entire fast-growing Asia-Pacific region.
“We are thrilled to triple our activities in Taichung and to be leading the Taiwanese offshore revolution,” said Marc Becker, CEO of Siemens Gamesa’s offshore business.
“Having been present locally since our first offshore installation in 2016, followed by the opening of our Taipei office in 2017, we greatly appreciate the clear pipeline of projects and visibility of market plans which are available.”
Becker said this allows his company to make “solid, long-term investments”.
“Taiwan and Taichung Harbour especially have proven their mettle to meet our desire to make this location the centrepiece of our Asia-Pacific offshore manufacturing activities,” he added.
The Siemens Gamesa offshore nacelle plant in Taichung is the largest production facility of its kind in Taiwan.
Construction of the first phase of the plant began in April 2020, with Taiwan’s first locally assembled offshore wind turbine nacelle being delivered in August 2021.
These first machines were provided to Ørsted’s 900 MW Greater Changhua 1 & 2a project.