Siemens has received an order for 258 of its SWT-2.3-101 units, which will be installed at three MidAmerican Energy Company wind projects in Iowa for a combined capacity of 593 megawatts.
"These wind turbines will be produced in our factories in Fort Madison, Iowa, and in Hutchinson, Kansas, and will supply secure and environmentally friendly energy to 190,000 average U.S. households," added Umlauft.
The scope of the MidAmerican Energy order includes the supply and commissioning of 258 Siemens 2.3-megawatt wind turbines with a rotor diameter of 101 meters, as well as a service, maintenance and warranty agreement for the Laurel, Rolling Hills and Pomeroy wind projects in Iowa.
In addition to the wind turbine order, Siemens signed a long-term service contract with MidAmerican Energy for its natural gas-fueled, combined-cycle Greater Des Moines Energy Center.
Recently, Siemens Energy celebrated the official opening of its new wind turbine nacelle assembly facility in Hutchinson, Kansas, and the company has committed to further production expansion as the U.S. market continues to grow.
Siemens Energy provides power systems that generate more than one-third of the electricity used in the U.S. In addition to its wind power production facilities, Siemens broke ground in October of this year on a new 400,000-square-foot, 60-Hz gas turbine production plant adjacent to its existing Siemens Steam Turbine-Generator Manufacturing Plant in Charlotte, N.C.
Since 2005, Siemens has made significant strides to grow its presence in the wind energy industry in the U.S., and is on track to become number two in the market. Siemens opened in 2007 and subsequently expanded its 600,000-square-foot wind turbine blade manufacturing facility in Fort Madison, Iowa. Other U.S. wind power operations include a Houston-based wind turbine service operation, an R&D center in Boulder, Colorado, two gearbox factories in Elgin, Illinois, and the company's Americas headquarters in Orlando, Fla.
In the U.S., Siemens employs close to 1,500 people in the wind business and has installed wind turbines with a combined capacity of more than 3,600 megawatts in the U.S., which is enough to supply power to more than one million average homes.
