US tower supplier DMI Industries expands to Canada

American company DMI Industries from North Dakota is expanding its steel wind tower fabrication operations into southern Ontario, saying it is attracted by Canada's long term commitment to renewable energy. "There is strong support for wind energy development from the governments of Canada and Ontario and demand for wind towers is growing proportionately. This expansion allows us to meet that demand while lowering the cost of delivery to site for our customers," says president Lars Moller. The company has bought a manufacturing plant in Fort Erie, just across the border from Buffalo in New York state, and plans to transform it into a state-of-the-art tower fabrication facility. Deliveries from the new plant, which will employ about 100 people in the first year, are expected to start in summer 2006. The facility will have initial capacity of 400 to 500 tower sections each year, equal to about 150 full towers, but Moller expects production capacity to increase as demand grows. The plant's location, says Moller, provides the company with access not only to markets in Canada, but also the US northeast. DMI currently has a 25% share of the North American tower market, which it expects to boost to 35% with the opening of its Ontario plant.