Canada invests $40M to expand HVDC transformer manufacturing

The Government of Canada announced a $40 million investment through the Strategic Response Fund to expand Hitachi Energy Canada’s Varennes transformer manufacturing facility, build a test laboratory, and establish an HVDC simulation and collaboration centre in Montréal.

• Main announcement: The Government of Canada is providing $40 million (federal investment increased from $30 million to $40 million) via the Strategic Response Fund to support Hitachi Energy Canada’s expansion in Varennes, Quebec, including a new 137,000 sq. ft. manufacturing building, a state-of-the-art test laboratory, and an HVDC simulation and collaboration centre at the company’s St-Laurent Montréal headquarters; the total project costs rise from $164.2 million to $410 million.
• Background and details: Hitachi Energy Canada will increase its committed FTE creation from 67 to 300 (company target >500 FTEs), raise student co-op terms from 285 to 305, and the release notes that governments of Canada and Quebec have provided additional financial support; the announcement frames the investment as securing domestic supply of HVDC transformers amid global lead times of up to five years.