Tillsonburg Wind Turbine Plant To Close

Tuesday, 18 July 2017 11:22

More than 300 Siemens employees in Tillsonburg will be out of a job as the plant closes by 2018.

TILLSONBURG - Oxford County is losing more than 300 more manufacturing jobs.

This morning Siemens employees gathered at the community centre for a meeting only to learn of the company's plan to close the Tillsonburg wind turbine plant by 2018.

206 employees have been given immediate notice. Deputy Mayor for the Town of Tillsonburg David Beres says this is a very sad day for the community.

"News from Siemens this morning was somewhat devastating, the ripple effect for 300 families to realize what's happening here. It's just a horrible thing and let's hope the economy gets back and some more jobs can be created and that it's not over, we have to be optimistic, that things will carry on. I do feel sorry for the families that are involved in this and we wish them the best."

Beres says we have to be optimistic that we can replace these jobs in Tillsonburg.

"We have to be optimistic, we have to hope that either Siemens, or someone similar, Green Energy is certainly up and coming and let's hope that we can find new new markets and rebuild."

In total more than 340 people will be impacted by the closure, but the entire community stands to feel the sting as the company has been a major employer in the area.

The Head of the Siemens Gamesa Business in Canada David Hickey did provide some reasoning for the move in a press release issued this morning.

"This was a very difficult decision that was taken only after assessing all the options. We have a great team of employees at the plant who have produced quality work for the last six years, and we sincerely appreciate all their efforts. However, the harsh reality is that, in order to remain competitive, we must constantly evaluate our global manufacturing footprint."

The release outlined the following reasons for the plant closure:

- The global market has become increasingly competitive—driving a reduction in prices
of more than 66% in the last seven years.

- Today’s market environment requires significantly larger blades, a critical requirement for our business to remain globally competitive. The Tillsonburg factory cannot easily be adapted to manufacture this product portfolio. The significant investments Page 2 of 3 necessary to bring the plant in line with current market requirements would result in costs that could not be competitive in the global markets.

- The market in Eastern Canada has experienced a significant reduction in the demand for blades in the last year.

- The export market into the U.S. has been delayed due to a combination of factors, including uncertainty around the U.S. tax policy.