As electric demand continues to surge in the U.S., demand for the equipment that keeps the grid running is, in turn, leading to increasingly long lead times, highlighting a critical weak point in an energy industry that is attempting to make huge leaps to meet the moment. Several leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are stepping up to meet the moment, recently announcing sizable investments to expand domestic operations and bolster access to critical electric components.
Building more generation and transmission are key pieces of the puzzle to meet demand, but without transformers, circuit breakers, high-voltage cables, and other critical grid components, the U.S. power system will not be able to keep up. The stakes are high: industry research projects U.S. electricity demand will grow by more than 50% through 2050.
Here’s a breakdown of several recent domestic manufacturing investments that could help the U.S. keep pace,
Power management company Eaton has announced a more than $242 million investment to expand its U.S. manufacturing footprint with a new facility in North Little Rock, Arkansas.
The company expects to double its U.S. manufacturing capacity of customized electrical enclosures from the Fibrebond business to help meet growing demand across data center, utility, industrial, and digital communications markets.
The new Eaton 1 million-square-foot facility is expected to create more than 1,200 manufacturing, electrical and operations jobs and expand workforce development opportunities in the region.
“Customers are looking for ways to deploy critical power infrastructure faster, with greater certainty and less complexity,” said Mike Yelton, president of Eaton’s American electric sector. “This investment expands our ability to deliver custom modular electrical enclosures while strengthening our U.S. manufacturing capacity and skilled workforce. Building on the strong foundation we’ve established in Minden, this investment enables us to better support customers with the speed, scale, and expertise they need to meet growing demand.”
G&W Electric has announced an expansion of its North American manufacturing footprint with a new 291,305-square-foot facility in Romeoville, Illinois.
The added space is meant to increase production capacity, improve operational flow, and support growing customer demand for grid technologies. The new facility includes roughly 30,000 square feet of office space, and specific manufacturing areas, including Viper and Viper-HV automatic circuit reclosers production, have transitioned to the new facility.
In addition to adding new capacity in Romeoville, G&W Electric is also planning an expansion of its existing 245 Bolingbrook facility to increase molding capacity.
G&W Electric’s solutions support applications across distribution and sub-transmission systems, including switching, fault protection, sensing, automation and system protection.
Siemens announced a combined investment of over $200 million in new manufacturing facilities in Pendergrass, Georgia, and Grand Prairie, Texas, that will expand its U.S. electrical infrastructure manufacturing footprint and create more than 1,500 jobs.
More than $185 million of the investment is dedicated to a new 550,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Pendergrass, Georgia. The facility will produce low-voltage electrical infrastructure products and systems for the data center market, the company said.
Siemens is also developing a $19 million Grand Prairie, Texas facility that will increase the capacity of its nearby flagship switchgear factory to support semiconductor, automotive, healthcare and other industrial and infrastructure markets. The 96,000-square-foot site will be a dedicated location for factory acceptance testing and warehousing for Siemens’ electrical products business.
Wire and cable manufacturer Southwire announced a $256 million investment in its Starkville, Mississippi operations.
Founded in 1950, Southwire is one of North America’s largest wire and cable producers and serves a range of electrical infrastructure markets. The expansion in Starkville includes adding approximately 380,000 square feet to the site’s footprint, along with manufacturing machinery and related equipment. The project is part of Southwire’s companywide commitment of more than $2 billion in modernization efforts across its locations.
Construction is expected to begin in late 2026, with the expanded operations expected to reach full capacity in 2028.
“Across Southwire, we are making significant investments to modernize our footprint and position our company for long-term growth,” said Rohan Kelkar, Southwire’s EVP of power and industrial. “This expansion in Starkville is an important part of that effort, connecting to our more than two-billion-dollar investment in modernization and helping us build the capacity needed to meet the growing demand driven by electrification, market growth, and the rapid expansion of data centers. It is an exciting time for our industry, for Southwire and for our team in Starkville as we continue strengthening our ability to support growth across North America and best serve our customers.”
HSP US, a Trench Group company, recently announced the official opening of its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Charlotte, representing a more than $60 million investment in domestic production of 25kV to 765kV high-voltage transformer bushings.
The new 170,000-square-foot HSP facility will create up to 140 manufacturing and engineering jobs in Charlotte through 2030 – nearly twice as many as the company originally planned. HSP US argues there is room to more than double production capacity from the initially planned 3,500 to 10,000 bushings per year.
The Charlotte facility features full-scale production capabilities for manufacturing dry-type transformer bushings, including resin-impregnated paper (RIP) and resin-impregnated synthetic (RIS) technologies, from 25 kV up to 765 kV. The HSP plant also supports future demand-driven expansion into high-voltage direct current (HVDC) applications, the company said.
From construction to full operation took only one and a half years, the company said.
“Power grids around the world are entering a period of rapid expansion, fueled by accelerating electricity demand, and the United States is one of the most important markets in that transformation,” said Bahadir Basdere, president and CEO of Trench Group. “With more than 130 years of high-voltage experience, Trench Group is investing in Charlotte to strengthen domestic manufacturing capacity and support customers building a more reliable, resilient U.S. energy future.”
Trench Group, which has two factories in Canada, argues the new Charlotte facility reflects rapidly growing demand across North America, which accounted for around 50% of the company’s total order intake in the first half of 2026. Since 2024, the order intake in the North American market increased by almost 400%.
“As America builds out its 765kV transmission backbone, these projects require proven technology, deep engineering expertise and a partner that understands the complexity of extra-high-voltage transmission,” said Jason Neal, president of Hyosung HICO and SEVP of HICO America. “Having a supply partner like HSP manufacturing here on U.S. soil is a real advantage: shorter lead times, a stronger supply chain, and a more reliable grid. HSP’s investment is exactly the kind of commitment our grid needs, and we’re proud to build alongside them.”
With assembly operations already underway, Trench Group expects first deliveries by the end of 2026. Once fully operational, the plant is poised to initially produce up to 3,500 HSP bushings per year.
Last on our list but certainly not least, Niagara Power Transformer announced a $71 million expansion at its Cheektowaga, New York operations, which includes adding 96,000 square feet to its facilities in the area for additional manufacturing, warehouse, and office use, Industrial Equipment News reports.
The company said this expansion could increase its transformer production by 50% – from 90 to 140 transformers per year. The expansion is projected to be completed by 2028.
