Siemens Energy Monday said it will build an offshore wind turbine manufacturing facility in the U.K. to meet demand in a sector that is on the verge of a massive ramp-up in capacity.

Siemens Energy, the power generation, transmission and distribution unit of German engineering giant Siemens AG (SI), is the second major company to reveal plans for offshore wind turbine facilities in the U.K. Last week, General Electric Co. (GE) said it was to invest EUR110 million on a turbine manufacturing plant in the U.K.

"In the foreseeable future the wind power market in the U.K. will be characterized by major offshore projects, and we'll extend our market leadership with the new production plant," said Siemens President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Loscher.

The U.K. , currently leading the sector with its recent award of leases to develop 32 gigawatts of offshore wind energy, expects around GBP100 billion investment over the next decade. Delivering the projects will require the installation of around 6,400 wind turbines, according to the U.K. 's Carbon Trust.

Siemens Energy said it intends to make investments in the "high double-digit million range" and is currently assessing potential sites for the production plant on the east coast and in the northeast of the U.K.

Siemens Energy is already a major supplier of turbines to the U.K. Around 40% of wind energy generated in the U.K. is produced with Siemens wind turbines.

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