Past Events

How Appalachia can become an important player in the wind turbine supply chain!

By March 28, 2025April 10th, 2025No Comments

Friday, March 28 at 11 am via Zoom

Friday, March 28 at 11 am via Zoom – The renewable energy revolution has arrived. Sustainable energy sources are rapidly displacing the coal plants that once powered America, but that  doesn’t mean they should displace Appalachia as the power house of American energy. Instead, the region can lean into its existing strengths and innovate now to play a central role in America’s energy future. Wind turbines require many manufactured parts that Appalachian communities are uniquely positioned to build. 

On Friday March 28, ReImagine Appalachia hosted a listening session on how Appalachia can leverage its strengths to become a key player in the emergent manufacturing supply chain to build the wind turbine components that will help power America’s future.

The renewable energy transition has arrived. Carbon-free energy sources accounted for 95% of the new power capacity built in the U.S. last year. Though outpaced by solar power and battery storage in recent growth, U.S. wind generation exceeded coal power for the first time in April 2023, then went on to reach a record high 47.7 Twh by April 2024, compared with 38.4 Twh for coal plants.1 Renewables are rapidly displacing coal power, but that doesn’t mean they should displace Appalachia as the power house of American energy. Instead, the region can lean into its existing strengths and innovate now to play a central role in America’s energy future.

Appalachia has many advantages that could help position the region as a critical part of the manufacturing supply chain for on- and offshore wind turbine components. High concentrations of skilled workers in iron foundries and plastics manufacturing can help communities win contracts to build turbine hubs and blades. The same waterways that once sent exports from the Appalachian coalfields around the globe to power the Industrial Revolution could now uniquely position the region to supply turbine components that have grown too large to ship overland; the need for massive facilities and transport infrastructure makes retired coal plants situated on the navigable waterways that once transported coal ideal manufacturing sites. Appalachia has other advantages too, especially if the region invests in its own wind infrastructure. The coal ash that now pollutes communities can be mined for the rare earth metals needed for the most cutting edge turbines, reducing dependency on China, and the remaining ash can be mixed into cement and repurposed in turbine footings. 

Though the Trump administration’s current disfavor for wind is likely to slow near-term deployment, developers have already laid plans for 41 GW of new offshore wind capacity, enough to power some 14 million homes. A quarter of this capacity has already received all federal permits, and about an eighth is under construction now or already built. States remain committed to contracts to purchase wind power from projects now under way. Market conditions that increasingly favor renewables powered by free fuel, coupled with increasing energy demand and the national security interest to produce a plentiful supply to meet the nation’s energy needs all mean that America’s energy future will depend on renewable generation including wind turbines. 

Resources shared at the event

As discussed, here is a follow-up with all of the links and other important information shared.  We will be in touch in the coming months when the report is ready to be released.

Links Dropped in the Chat: