Wendell Microgrid Project - outside with shadow

Sustainable and resilient manufacturing

Wendell, North Carolina

Siemens’ Wendell campus advances energy resilience with a microgrid that can power 100% of its manufacturing operations — protecting production from grid outages through on‑site generation, storage, and intelligent energy management.

Integrated into the company’s U.S. Electrification and Automation headquarters in Wendell, NC, the 1.25 MW microgrid combines a solar photovoltaic carport array paired with a 3.9 MWh battery energy storage system. The microgrid, together with other campus-wide energy-saving initiatives, enabled the Wendell site to achieve fully carbon-neutral operations, proving that resilience and sustainability can advance together.

Resilience You Can Measure

1.25 MW AC solar photovoltaic (PV) carport array
3.9 MWh battery energy storage (BESS)
979 kW / 3,916 kWh storage system rating (Tesla Megapack 2 XL)
10 KACO string inverters
42 VersiCharge EV chargers
~800 tons CO₂ avoided annually
2.5 MWh annual reduction in grid energy consumption
Automatic islanding and black‑start capabilities

“The microgrid that we’ve integrated here at our Wendell campus is one of the more advanced microgrids installed in the market today, It’s a true showcase of Siemens end-to-end products across our portfolio from our low-voltage energy solutions through to EV chargers, building automation and microgrid controllers.”

Brian Dula, USA’s President of Electrification and Automation, Siemens

Creating a repeatable model for industrial manufacturing

From 2020 to 2023, the Wendell facility experienced numerous power outages that shut down the factory and caused reduced productivity estimated at over $400k annually. The Wendell microgrid makes downtime from power-grid outages a thing of the past. Now, in the event of an outage, the microgrid automatically transitions into island mode, maintaining full power supply and eliminating negative impact to production.

Technology

At the heart of Wendell’s microgrid is the SICAM A8000 microgrid controller, providing comprehensive, centralized energy management. SICAM A8000 facilitates Wendell’s integrated approach to energy resilience through dynamic supply and demand-side optimization.

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Utility partnership, community resilience

As the largest solar + storage industrial microgrid on Duke Energy’s distribution network in the Carolinas, the project sets a new standard for resilient, sustainable power amid rising demand. The system can participate in net energy metering, exporting excess electricity back to the grid to support other customers. This capability not only strengthens energy reliability at the Wendell campus but also contributes to broader grid stability for the surrounding community.

Decarbonisation

Decarbonization at the Wendell site goes beyond clean power — it extends into the building itself. By replacing natural-gas HVAC systems with electric heat pumps, the site eliminated a major source of on-site emissions. Those systems now operate using renewable energy generated by the on-site microgrid, creating a fully integrated approach to sustainability. The result is a facility where clean electricity powers both production and comfort. When paired with solar generation and battery storage, HVAC electrification helps Wendell reduce carbon emissions while maintaining reliable, uninterrupted operations — proving that sustainability and performance can move forward together.