US Forged Rings Inc. has announced a $700 million investment in the U.S. offshore wind industry to construct a tower fabrication facility and a steel forging plant. The U.S.-based company will use the two facilities to service the growing domestic offshore wind market, filling a supply chain gap for offshore wind components and alleviating bottlenecks for a market with goals of deploying 30 GW by 2030 and 110 GW by 2050.
Through its strategic supply chain partnerships with Nucor, North America’s largest steel producer and recycler, providing sustainable steel for offshore wind-tower construction, and Ellwood Quality Steels, North America’s leading ingot caster, USFR is committed to producing final products that are 100 percent made in the U.S.
The tower fabrication facility will produce 100 fully coated towers annually that include internally produced flanges, eliminating potential delays and logistics issues, lowering the overall cost.
The facility is designed from its inception to be expandable up to 200 towers annually, depending on demand. The new steel forging facility will produce large flanges up to 40 feet in diameter, making it the largest ring rolling facility in North America and Europe.
The facility will also produce forged components required in other heavy industries including nuclear energy, construction, shipping, and mining.
“This substantial investment serving U.S. offshore wind was spurred by our confidence in the medium and long-term prospects of the U.S. market, which is in its early phases of development and needs a local supply chain to rely on,” said Giacomo Sozzi, president of USFR. “These facilities will enable U.S. developers and OEMs to have predictable costs and a reliable supply of vital components. Equally important, the investment will result in direct environmental benefits including the reduction of significant pollution emitted by otherwise shipping these huge components from overseas.”
Once all permits and regulatory approvals are secured, construction of the facilities is expected to take 16-20 months, with first towers beginning production in Q1 2026. The two facilities will create more than 500 U.S. full-time employment positions. The facilities will also limit carbon footprint by using 77 percent recycled content, making it a fraction of the global average.
“We are currently in the final stages of evaluating several potential locations on the East Coast,” said Slavko Zurovac, USFR’s managing director. “All potential sites are strategically positioned with access to required waterways, rail, and utilities, providing significant logistical benefits and making it competitive to supply large components.”
More info www.usfr.com
