Hitachi Energy will invest $528 million to build a new transformer manufacturing facility in Gallman, Mississippi, expanding U.S. production of equipment needed to support a rapidly growing electricity system.
The project marks the company’s largest single investment in the United States to date. It will also anchor Hitachi Energy’s approximately $1.5 billion U.S. manufacturing expansion program.
The new factory will rise on a 45-acre site at the Copiah County Industrial Park. Construction is expected to begin later this year, with transformer production scheduled to start in 2029.
Hitachi Energy said the facility will more than double its transformer production capacity in Mississippi. The project will also create 654 jobs, according to the Mississippi Development Authority.
The investment comes as utilities, data centers, manufacturers and other large electricity users place growing demands on the U.S. power grid.
New Factory Will More Than Double Mississippi Transformer Capacity
The Gallman facility will sit about 6.5 miles from Hitachi Energy’s existing Crystal Springs plant.
The new factory will be more than twice the size of the Crystal Springs facility. It will include new manufacturing equipment and infrastructure and significantly expand the company’s domestic transformer production.
Hitachi Energy currently employs about 475 people at its Copiah County operation, which produces small power transformers.
Production will continue at Crystal Springs until the Gallman facility is completed. Hitachi Energy will then transition transformer production to the new factory.
The company plans to continue using the Crystal Springs building for warehousing, training or other operational needs.
That approach will allow Hitachi Energy to expand production while maintaining its existing footprint and workforce in Copiah County.
Transformer Supply Becomes a Grid Bottleneck
The timing of the investment reflects a wider challenge facing the U.S. electricity sector.
The country is adding power generation, transmission infrastructure and large electricity-consuming facilities at a rapid pace. Data centers, advanced manufacturing plants and industrial electrification are all increasing demand for grid connections and electrical equipment.
Transformers are a critical part of that system. Utilities and developers need them to move electricity between different voltage levels as power travels from generation facilities through transmission and distribution networks.
Long equipment lead times can therefore delay larger energy and infrastructure projects even after developers secure financing, land and other approvals.
Hitachi Energy is expanding domestic manufacturing capacity at a time when the company says electricity demand is growing rapidly.
“Demand for electricity is growing rapidly, and the grid must grow with it,” Andreas Schierenbeck, CEO of Hitachi Energy, said.
He said the Mississippi investment reflects the company’s long-term commitment to American manufacturing and to building grid infrastructure that can support U.S. growth.
Hitachi Energy Expands Across the U.S.
The Gallman factory is part of a broader manufacturing expansion by Hitachi Energy.
In June, the company broke ground on a $457 million expansion of its large power transformer factory in South Boston, Virginia. The project will create 825 jobs and is expected to become the nation’s largest facility of its kind.
Hitachi Energy also announced a $106 million expansion in Alamo, Tennessee, to increase production of critical transformer components and create more than 100 jobs.
In Pennsylvania, the company announced a $70 million expansion of its facilities in Westmoreland County. That project focuses on high-voltage equipment for the power grid.
Together, the investments form an approximately $1.5 billion U.S. manufacturing expansion and will create more than 1,600 jobs, according to Hitachi Energy.
The projects give the company a broader domestic manufacturing base for equipment used across the power system.
Why the Mississippi Project Matters
Mississippi already has an established Hitachi Energy manufacturing operation in Copiah County.
The company’s decision to build the larger Gallman facility allows it to expand production near its existing workforce and operations.
The Mississippi Development Authority is supporting the project through the Mississippi Flexible Tax Incentive, or MFLEX, program. The agency will also assist with site development and infrastructure improvements.
Copiah County is providing additional assistance.
Mississippi officials have positioned the project as both an economic-development investment and a contribution to the U.S. power-equipment supply chain.
“This $528 million investment expands domestic transformer production at a time when demand continues to grow across North America,” said Bill Cork, executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority.
The project will also create a new pipeline of skilled manufacturing jobs in the region.
Data Centers Add Pressure to the Power Grid
The expansion comes as data centers become a major source of new electricity demand in the United States.
AI computing has pushed developers to plan increasingly large data-center campuses, while manufacturers and other industrial users are also seeking new grid capacity.
Those projects require more than generation. They also need substations, transformers, transmission infrastructure and other electrical equipment to connect new loads to the grid.
Hitachi Energy’s Mississippi investment therefore arrives at a critical point in the U.S. power buildout.
The company expects the Gallman factory to begin production in 2029. By then, its expanded manufacturing capacity will be positioned to serve a power system that is expected to have added substantial new electricity demand from data centers, industrial facilities and other large loads.
A $528M Bet on U.S. Grid Infrastructure
Hitachi Energy’s Gallman project will not resolve the country’s transformer and grid-equipment constraints on its own.
But it represents a major addition to domestic manufacturing capacity at a time when the U.S. is trying to expand its power system and strengthen supply chains for critical grid equipment.
The project also shows how the current energy buildout is creating demand beyond power plants and data centers themselves.
As electricity consumption rises, manufacturers must also expand the equipment needed to connect those new loads to the grid.
For Copiah County, the result will be a $528 million manufacturing investment, hundreds of new jobs and a significantly larger transformer production operation.
For Hitachi Energy, Gallman will become the centerpiece of its wider U.S. manufacturing expansion when production begins in 2029.
The expansion of U.S. power infrastructure is also driving investment in the equipment needed to support it. While Hitachi Energy is adding transformer manufacturing capacity in Mississippi to meet rising demand for grid equipment, TMEIC has opened a 280,000-square-foot Texas facility focused on power electronics for data centers and other energy-intensive industries.
Project Factsheet: Hitachi Energy Gallman Transformer Manufacturing Facility
- Location: Gallman, Copiah County, Mississippi
- Investment: $528 million
- Developer/Operator: Hitachi Energy
- Site: 45 acres at Copiah County Industrial Park
- Jobs: 654
- Construction: Expected to begin later in 2026
- Production: Scheduled to begin in 2029
- Facility: More than twice the size of the existing Crystal Springs plant
- Capacity: More than double Hitachi Energy’s transformer production capacity in Mississippi
- Existing workforce: About 475 employees at the Crystal Springs facility
- Broader U.S. investment: Approximately $1.5 billion
Leave a Reply