Hitachi Energy to build $478.8 million insulation plant in London, Ontario

Hitachi Energy Canada Inc. is making a $478.8 million investment to build a Transformer Insulation Centre in London, Ontario, supported by $50 million in combined federal and provincial funding, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada announced on October 16, 2026.

The 21,000-square-meter facility in London's Huron Industrial Park will be Canada's first manufacturing plant for electrical-grade pressboard and laminated insulation materials used in high-voltage transformers. The site is scheduled for completion by 2028.

The plant will process Canadian wood fibre into up to 20,000 tonnes annually of electrical-grade pressboard. The output will supply Hitachi Energy's transformer manufacturing plant in Varennes, Quebec, as well as external transformer and insulation manufacturers in North America and international markets.

The Canadian federal government is contributing $30 million to the project, announced by Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions. The federal funding includes $20 million through the Strategic Response Fund and $10 million through the Investments in Forest Industry Transformation program.

The Ontario provincial government is providing up to $20 million in conditional funding through the Invest Ontario Fund to support the project.

Hitachi Energy currently employs about 1,250 people in Canada. Under the project, the company plans to increase its total Canadian workforce to 1,765 employees, creating more than 100 new jobs at the London plant.

The facility is intended to adopt automated manufacturing technologies to improve production efficiency. Federal officials noted that rising power demand is being driven by grid modernization, electrification, renewable energy deployment, and data centre expansion.

The government said the facility will also support Canada's forest sector amid tariffs and global market pressures by creating new domestic demand for local forest inputs. The effort aligns with goals under the National Electricity Strategy and an upcoming federal forest sector strategy aimed at strengthening domestic value chains.

Construction of the Huron Industrial Park facility is slated to finish in 2028.