Hitachi Energy to open Glasgow engineering hub to support critical UK grid upgrades

Scotland’s clean energy sector continues to grow with the announcement that Hitachi Energy is bringing a new UK Engineering Centre of Excellence to Glasgow. Hitachi Energy, a global technology leader in electrification, will open the new premises in the city centre early next year, after receiving a £1.7million grant from Scottish Enterprise to support an overall investment of over £3m.

The Engineering Centre will create approximately 90 new specialized roles, including specialist engineers and project managers, focused on upgrading the UK’s electrical grid to support the transition to a net-zero future.

As well as servicing the UK’s electrical grid, the Glasgow Centre will be part of Hitachi’s global network servicing projects worldwide and the high-level engineering skill set available in Scotland is expected to be shared throughout its global network of engineers.

This announcement comes as the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy, Gillian Martin, leads an energy transition delegation at World Expo Osaka to explore opportunities for Scottish businesses and inward investment.

Ms Martin’s visit to Hitachi formed part of an overall four-day programme of activity to build on this existing relationship and promote Scottish businesses to the global delegation attending Expo Osaka. A total of 158 participating countries, as well as 42 different international agencies, such as the European Union, UNICEF and UNESCO were in attendance.

Hirohide Hirai, Vice President & Executive Officer at Hitachi, Ltd, said: “The UK is a very important country for the whole of the Hitachi Group. I am very proud of the role Hitachi Energy is playing in the vital task of developing the electricity grid for Scotland’s electrified future. People are our most important asset and establishing our new Glasgow Centre is a key step in welcoming more local talent to support our growth.”

Hitachi Energy’s Country Managing Director for the UK and Ireland, Laura Fleming, highlighted the continued investment in Scotland: “This represents a significant investment in Scotland and adds to our footprint across the UK. The investment is largely due to the continued trust of our customers in helping them to deliver the energy system of the future. Together, we are rapidly expanding to meet soaring demand for grid infrastructure.

Across the UK and in Scotland we plan to expand to over 1,000 employees by 2027 offering long lasting and rewarding careers with this site being key to our growth placing Scotland as central to achieving Clean Power by 2030.”

Hitachi Energy is the latest energy company to move into Scotland, boosting the start-to-end supply chain and securing Scotland’s position as a world leader in the move to renewables.