Siemens Commissions 1.25 MW Solar Microgrid With 3.9 MWh Battery

Siemens commissioned a 1.25 MW solar-plus-storage microgrid at its manufacturing facility in Wendell, North Carolina, on May 12, 2026. The system includes a 3.9 MWh battery energy storage system and is reportedly the largest solar-plus-storage industrial microgrid on Duke Energy‘s distribution network in the Carolinas, according to the company’s press release.

What Is Being Built

The Wendell microgrid comprises a 1.25 MW solar carport and a 3.9 MWh battery energy storage system. Siemens supplied all hardware, including the SICAM A8000 microgrid controller, KACO string inverters, low-voltage switchboards and bolted-pressure switches, SIPROTEC universal protective relays, and Siemens VersiCharge EV chargers. The system supports net energy metering and exports excess generation to Duke Energy’s grid, per the filing.

Why It Matters

Siemens states the microgrid, combined with existing campus efficiency programs, renders the Wendell site operationally carbon neutral. The company reports this will cut grid electricity consumption by approximately 2.5 MWh annually and avoid about 800 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year, according to the company’s Q1 release. This project positions the Wendell campus, which manufactures medium-voltage power distribution equipment, to maintain production during grid outages by islanding from Duke Energy’s feed. US Rep. Deborah Ross (D-NC) attended the commissioning. Brian Dula, Siemens USA president of electrification and automation, characterized the project as a demonstration of Siemens’ generation-to-consumption portfolio. Siemens has a corporate objective of net-zero operations by 2030 and has invested $36 million in the Wendell campus for training and sustainability initiatives, per the company’s sustainability report.

Critical Perspective

While Siemens reports operational carbon neutrality and reduced grid consumption, the actual impact of this 1.25 MW solar and 3.9 MWh battery system on the broader reliability of Duke Energy’s distribution network in the Carolinas remains to be seen. The project’s scale, while noted as the largest of its kind on Duke’s network, represents a small fraction of the region’s overall energy demand. The reported annual electricity consumption reduction of 2.5 MWh is a modest figure when considered against the total energy needs of a manufacturing facility, according to the company’s Q1 release.

Sources

• https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2026/05/siemens-plant-goes-carbon-neutral-with-solar-microgrid/
• https://news.siemens.com/en-us/wendell-state-of-the-art-microgrid/
• https://www.wral.com/business/technology/siemens-microgrid-may-2026/

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