Manufacturers Make Big Investments in Bulk-Power Equipment

Manufacturers are ramping up their U.S. production of equipment used in bulk-power generation and distribution.

What’s going on: Hitachi Energy and Eaton are two of the companies making significant investments in the machinery that’s critical to powering data centers and increasing U.S. grid resilience.

• Earlier this month, Hitachi announced that it would build a $528 million transformer manufacturing facility in Gallman, Mississippi. The move is expected to create more than 700 jobs (PR Newswire).
• In April, intelligent power management company Eaton said it would invest “over $30 million to increase U.S. production of its medium-voltage switchgear, the equipment used to protect, control and isolate electrical equipment in data center, utility and industrial power generation and distribution systems.”
• And in early 2025, Eaton announced that it was investing $340 million to add a third American manufacturing site, in South Carolina, to make three-phase transformers.

The backdrop: Recent years have seen an electrical transformer shortage due to increased electrification, and wait times for purchased transformers now average nearly two-and-a-half years (IndustrialSage).

About the projects: The Mississippi plant—which will eventually replace a smaller facility in the state—will be Hitachi’s largest single investment in the U.S. to date.

• “The new factory in Gallman will be approximately 6.5 miles (10 kilometers) from Hitachi Energy’s existing Crystal Springs facility. At over twice the size of the current plant, it will more than double capacity. Construction is expected to begin late this year, with transformer production at the facility scheduled to start in 2029.”
• Production of engineered-to-order switchgear at Eaton’s upcoming 370,000-square-foot Nebraska site “is expected to begin in the first half of 2027” (Renewable Energy World).
• Production and hiring at Eaton’s Jonesville, South Carolina, plant are expected to begin in 2027 (Eaton.com).

Why it’s important: “As manufacturers continue to invest in electrification, the U.S. and its allies will need to generate and deliver more power,” said NAM Senior Director of Energy and Resources Policy Mike Davin.

• “These bulk-power equipment investments are a vital part of being able to produce that energy for manufacturers and residential customers in an affordable and reliable way.”