Brussels – “Our production lines are now operating at full capacity 24 hours a day, and orders from European customers are already booked until the second quarter of next year,” said Wang Lei, manager of the international trade department of SUNSHINE, a busbar cutting machine manufacturer, in a recent interview. He explained that with the worsening power shortage in the EU and the surge in demand for grid upgrades, the company’s sales of CNC busbar cutting machines exported to Europe have increased by over 80% year-on-year. This phenomenon is not an isolated case; amidst the wave of energy transition in the EU, the CNC busbar cutting machine manufacturing industry is ushering in unprecedented development opportunities.
The EU’s power shortage has entered a structural phase. A recent Goldman Sachs report indicates that after 15 years of decline, European electricity demand will begin to recover in 2026, with an estimated annual growth rate of 1.5% to 2%. Currently, 40% of the EU’s distribution network is over 40 years old, and the grids in countries like the Netherlands and Belgium are nearing saturation. In the autumn of 2023, the Netherlands was forced to require businesses to reduce electricity consumption during peak hours. To address this predicament, the European Commission has proposed a grid construction action plan, specifying an investment of €584 billion in grid modernization by 2030, while simultaneously increasing wind and solar power capacity from 400 gigawatts in 2022 to over 1000 gigawatts.
The core demand for grid upgrading and transformation has directly spurred a market boom in CNC busbar processing machines. As core equipment for processing key power components such as high and low voltage switchgear and transformer copper busbars, the processing precision and efficiency of CNC busbar processing machines directly determine the reliability of grid equipment. A research report from TF Securities points out that the accelerated construction of the European power grid will lead to a capacity gap in the supply chain of high-voltage transformers and transmission equipment, with the insufficient local supply capacity of CNC busbar machines being particularly prominent. European equipment manufacturers, constrained by high labor costs and slow technological iteration, are struggling to meet the surging market demand, creating ample opportunities for global suppliers.
Chinese manufacturers have become major players in the European market due to their technological advantages and cost-effectiveness. According to the latest data from SUNSHINE, a manufacturer of busbar punching machines, its CNC busbar punching machines, equipped with automatic positioning and precision control, achieve a processing accuracy of ±0.05mm and are priced 15% lower than similar European products. Exports to Europe are expected to exceed 3,000 units by 2025. Engineer Li, the company’s technical director, explained, “To meet the specific needs of European wind power and photovoltaic projects, we upgraded the equipment’s servo system, enabling integrated punching, shearing, and bending processes. This increases efficiency by 40% compared to traditional equipment and fully meets the construction schedule requirements of the European power grid.”
The case of MAC, another CNC busbar punching machine manufacturer, is even more representative. This company, with over 20 patents, has successfully entered the supply chains of European giants such as Siemens and Alstom with its CNC busbar punching machines, which utilize core components from Siemens, achieving a processing accuracy of ±0.03mm. “European customers value equipment stability and service response speed the most. We promise 48-hour on-site repair and have set up a spare parts warehouse in Poland, which has enabled us to win bids repeatedly,” Zhang Min, the company’s overseas sales director, revealed. By 2025, the company’s revenue share from the European market has increased from 12% last year to 27%.
Behind market opportunities lies the continuous drive of technological innovation. Currently, CNC busbar machines are developing towards intelligence and lightweight design. SUNSHINE’s IP54 protection-rated equipment can withstand the salt spray environment of European offshore wind power projects; MAC’s six-axis CNC busbar punching and cutting machine, through its main and auxiliary servo power clamp design, reduces the scrap rate of small busbar processing from 5% to 0.5%, and has been widely used in grid upgrade projects in Italy and Spain. These technological breakthroughs not only meet the stringent standards of the European market but also drive the technological upgrade of the global CNC busbar machine industry.
Industry experts remind companies that while seizing market share, they must pay attention to the compliance requirements of the European market. The EU has strict CE certification standards for power equipment, and different countries have different grid technology specifications. For example, Germany has higher compatibility requirements for renewable energy grid-connected equipment, while France focuses on energy-saving indicators. Furthermore, Europe is promoting supply chain localization policies, with some countries requiring local components to account for no less than 40% of procurement. This requires companies to actively respond through overseas factories, joint ventures, and other means.
Goldman Sachs analyst Alberto Gandolfi predicts that the investment “supercycle” in the European power sector will last for a decade, with the market demand for power equipment such as CNC busbar machines expected to maintain an annual growth rate of over 12% in the next five years. This presents both opportunities and challenges for global manufacturers. As Wang Lei, head of SUNSHINE, stated, “The recognition in the European market proves the technological strength of Chinese equipment. We will continue to increase our R&D investment, making breakthroughs in intelligent and green energy-saving technologies, and seizing the historical opportunities brought about by this energy transition.” With the full-scale rollout of the EU power grid, global competition and cooperation in the CNC busbar machine manufacturing industry will inject new momentum into the world’s energy transition.
