Siemens Mobility to build rail car plant in North Carolina

LEXINGTON, N.C. (AP) – A division of German engineering giant Siemens AG will build a passenger rail car manufacturing plant in central North Carolina, creating over 500 jobs by 2028, Gov. Roy Cooper and the company announced on Tuesday.

Siemens Mobility Inc. plans to invest $220 million to build a major advanced manufacturing and rail services center in Davidson County, Cooper’s office said in a news release.

The 200-acre (81-hectare) site in Lexington – featuring over 2 miles (3 kilometers) of rail track – is where Siemens Mobility will build passenger cars to better serve its East Coast customers and meet growing demand for its products.

Siemens Mobility said production will start in 2024. The company, which has several manufacturing plants, 4,000 employees and over 2,000 suppliers in the country, said an infrastructure law that Congress passed in 2021 is injecting funds into U.S. rail and transit operations.

Average salaries for the new positions will be $51,568, which is slightly above the average salary for Davidson County, Cooper’s office said.

Siemens Mobility could receive from the state up to $5.6 million in cash payments over 12 years if it meets investment and job-creation requirements through the state’s Job Development Investment Grant program. A state committee approved the award agreement earlier Wednesday.