SOMERSET – Plans for a new cable manufacturing plant at the site of a former power plant on Brayton Point have been scrapped.
A Prysmian Group spokesperson confirmed Monday to Providence Business News that the company has decided to not move forward with purchasing the land at Brayton Point and build the new manufacturing facility. Company spokesperson Jonathan Heywood said in a statement that Prysmian is continuously evaluating market opportunities for its capacity to be aligned with demand, to best serve its customers’ needs, and to also carry out efficient and timely investments.
Those investment include “all relevant permitting permissions” in Prysmian’s growing markets both in the U.S. and around the world, Heywood said.
“As a result of the consideration, including the strong growth opportunities in the U.S. and global cable markets, Prysmian has decided to not proceed with the purchase of the land in Somerset, and therefore will not proceed with the Brayton Point project,” Heywood said. “We would like to share our appreciation for the support that we received from the state and local leaders as well as the residents of Somerset while we worked on this project.”
Heywood’s statement did not answer questions from PBN as to why Prysmian declined to build its facility at Brayton Point, including questions if the land was unfeasible to build on or were there other reasons the company chose to pass on the project.
The old coal-fired power plant was demolished in 2019 after it closed in 2017 and the site was later earmarked to
become the commonwealth’s first offshore wind manufacturing facility. At the time, Prysmian finalized an agreement with the commonwealth to acquire a 47-acre parcel at the site to make subsea transmission cables that will bring power generated by offshore wind to the electrical grid.
Prysmian was to spend about $200 million on the new manufacturing facility. Avangrid and Prysmian Group said in 2019 they chose the site because of its waterfront industrial location and acreage.
The investment in Somerset was slated to be part of Avangrid Renewables’ successful bid to the state for a future offshore wind project off the coast of Massachusetts, south of Martha’s Vineyard.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on X at @James_Bessette. The Associated Press has contributed to this story.