Siemens to shut Texas turbines service facility, dismiss workers

By Liz Hampton
FILE PHOTO: The Siemens logo is seen on a building in Siemensstadt in Berlin, Germany, October 31, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke/File Photo

By Liz Hampton

HOUSTON (Reuters) - German engineering firm Siemens <SIEGn.DE> plans to dismiss about 200 workers at a gas turbines parts and components service center in Houston, Texas, next year due to weaker global demand, a company spokesman said on Tuesday.

The Texas operation will close between late 2019 and 2020, according to the spokesman, who called the decision "difficult."

In a letter to the Texas Workforce Commission, Siemens also pointed to overcapacity within its network.

Siemens said in September that it would cut 2,900 jobs in Germany to boost the competitiveness of its Power and Gas and Process Industries divisions. [nL8N1WA4C2]

Along with turbine competitors General Electric <GE.N> and Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems <MITU.BO>, Siemens has faced oversupply and declining sales as demand for gas turbines has plunged.

(Reporting by Liz Hampton; Editing by Leslie Adler)