HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Siemens Gamesa reported during its Capital Markets Day forecast that it plans to make major changes to the onshore product line by reducing the number and type of wind turbines. What this means for the plant in Hutchinson is a new turbine to go with two models still manufactured.
The company, which has existed less than a year after the merger between the two wind giants, plans to eliminate the newer direct-drive platform from its onshore market and go back to the more tried-and-true geared drive.
The company now plans to offer just two product lines of onshore systems with just nine variants, compared to 25. It will also begin production on a new 4.2 MW onshore turbine in the next year and reduce the number of offshore products to a single 7 MW direct-drive unit. Plans are in place to introduce an even larger 8 MW turbine for the offshore market. The new onshore platform will be built in Hutchinson along with the current 3.4-132 and the 2.7-129 turbines.
A statement from Siemens Games regarding the Hutchinson facility read as follows. ” For specific impact to Hutchinson, we announced a new addition to our 2.X product platform, the SG 2.7-129, which will be manufactured in Hutchinson and Fort Madison. Combined with the SG 3.4-132 and SG 4.2-145 wind turbines, these products can address all of the diverse needs of the U.S. market. As previously announced, we have been retooling both facilities to accommodate these product lines”.
The plan also includes a series of measures that will unlock $2.5 billion of cost reductions. The elimination of more than 6,000 jobs — as previously announced, with 150 taken from Hutchinson — is included in the cost reduction.
The company’s technology strategy is premised on “one segment, one technology,” which means consolidating geared technology in the onshore segment and direct-drive technology in the offshore arena.
Siemens Gamesa says the wind power sector expects huge growth in the coming years and predicts the onshore market will grow 5 percent until 2020. The offshore market is expected to grow 13 percent to 2025.