Mitsubishi Power Systems Americas, Inc., (MPSA), has announced its intention to build a wind turbine manufacturing facility in Fort Smith, Arkansas. MPSA plans to invest approximately $100 million in the project, which could employ as many as 400 people.
“We are very excited to announce the future MPSA Wind Turbine manufacturing site in Fort Smith, Arkansas,” says Koji Hasegawa, president and CEO of MPSA, based in Lake Mary, Florida. “After an intensive site selection process conducted during the last 15 months we concluded that Fort Smith offers the most attractive site and community support for building and operating our wind turbine plant. We are very thankful for the excellent support provided to us by Governor Mike Beebe, Senators Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor, Congressman John Boozman, Maria Haley and her economic development staff, and the entire Arkansas delegation. Additionally, we are also very impressed with Arkansas’s commitment to the renewable energy industry. With the establishment of this wind turbine manufacturing plant, we are also planning to expand our component sourcing in the U.S. so as to shorten our supply chain.”
MPSA intends to locate its wind turbine manufacturing plant in a new 200,000 sq. ft. facility at Fort Chaffee, near Fort Smith, occupying 90 acres. “The arrival of Mitsubishi in Arkansas is exciting news for our economy and for our renewable-energy manufacturing sector,” Governor Mike Beebe says. “Mitsubishi is a brand recognized and respected worldwide, and the substantial investment they will make in Fort Smith is evidence of Arkansas’s momentum in the global economy.”
The company plans on beginning construction by early 2011. “Arkansas and Mitsubishi are a winning combination for renewable energy and economic development,” U.S. Senator Mark Pryor says. “I know that Mitsubishi will benefit from the area’s strong community support, work ethic and ingenuity. This partnership will bring America one step closer to realizing the full potential of wind energy.”
MPSA currently has more than 4,500 wind turbines in operation worldwide, and over 3,000 wind turbines in the U.S. “Fort Chaffee has a tremendous amount of potential and I am pleased that Mitsubishi Power Systems Americas, Inc. has recognized what Fort Smith and the region has to offer,” says U.S. Representative John Boozman. “We are fortunate to have had cooperation at all levels of government and within the community to make Fort Smith standout and MPSA select it for this investment. We welcome MPSA to the Third District, and I look forward to working with the company in the future.”
MPSA was established in 2001 with key operations in Orlando, Florida, Newport Beach, California, Houston, Texas, and Juarez, Mexico. MPSA provides a wide variety of products and services for the electric power generation industry including gas, steam, wind, geothermal and hydroelectric turbines, boilers, selective catalytic reduction systems, and solar energy. The company is a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), a diversified Fortune “Global 150” company with more than $30 billion in annual revenues and 40,000 employees worldwide. MHI is an international leader in the design and supply of energy, aerospace, machinery, transportation, and environmental systems and equipment. For more information contact Jonathan Wang at (949) 856-8473 or jwang@mpshq.com. Go online to www.mpshq.com.
