Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 4, 2026
2 min readLast updated: February 4, 2026
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Wartsila's Q4 orders missed forecasts due to U.S. tariffs, but the company remains optimistic about data centre growth, especially in the U.S.
By Anne Kauranen and Marta Frackowiak
HELSINKI, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Finnish engineering group Wartsila missed fourth-quarter orders forecasts on Wednesday, dragged down by U.S. battery tariffs and tougher competition in its energy storage business.
The company's shares fell around 3%, even though CEO Hakan Agnevall pointed to "ample opportunities" supplying engine-based power generation to new data centres - a fast-growing business as grid capacity strains under the AI-driven data boom.
"We have a very positive outlook on the market," he told Reuters, adding he saw opportunities both inside and outside the U.S., where the growth is fastest and which accounts for around 50% of the data centre market.
Still, fourth-quarter orders fell 11% year-on-year to 2.22 billion euros ($2.63 billion), below the 2.33 billion euros expected by analysts polled by Vara.
Agnevall said the drop reflected around 900 million euros of business divestments, while 50-60% U.S. tariffs on batteries had put "a wet blanket" on the country's energy storage market.
He added that sluggish electric vehicle sales had increased competition from other battery makers, but said energy storage remained relatively small at around 700 million euros of net sales, compared with 5.5 billion euros from the marine and energy divisions combined.
In its 2026 outlook, Wartsila said it expected demand in its energy and energy storage businesses to improve over the next 12 months, while demand in its marine division should remain broadly unchanged.
The company said it planned to invest about 140 million euros to expand production capacity by 35% at its Vaasa technology hub in Finland, with the new capacity due on stream in early 2028.
($1 = 0.8451 euros)
(Reporting by Anne Kauranen in Helsinki and Marta Frąckowiak in Gdansk. Editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak and Mark Potter)
Energy storage refers to capturing energy produced at one time for use at a later time. It is essential for balancing supply and demand in energy systems.
U.S. battery tariffs are taxes imposed on imported batteries to protect domestic manufacturers. These tariffs can increase costs for companies relying on imported battery technology.
Investment expansion refers to increasing capital allocation towards business growth, such as enhancing production capacity or entering new markets.
The data centre market involves facilities that house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and storage systems, crucial for data management.
Market performance refers to how well a company or sector performs in terms of sales, revenue, and stock price, often compared to industry benchmarks.
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