LS Cable & System (LS C&S) has completed what it described as Asia’s largest high-voltage direct current (HVDC) underwater cable production plant in Donghae, Gangwon Province, South Korea.
A press release said that the Donghae plant, named Submarine Building 4, is a 172-m-tall vertical continuous vulcanization (VCV) tower with a total floor area spanning 34,816 sq m. Approximately $141 million was spent since construction that started in July 2021.
Since building South Korea’s first submarine cable plant in 2008, LS C&S has made significant investments in its submarine business. The company also recently purchased stakes in KT Submarine, a submarine cable maker, becoming the largest shareholder (43.8%).
“The completion of this HVDC plant will serve as an accelerator for growth in the era of energy transition and the rise of the power industry,” said LS C&S CEO Koo Bon-gyu. “We will contribute to the advancement of the electric power industry through the construction of efficient energy networks and the enhancement of national competitiveness.”
Last December, LS C&S won a contract to supply HVDC cables to the Vanguard Wind Power Complex in the U.K., Korea’s largest cable deal signed to date in Europe.
More than 100 key persons—including LS Group Chairman Koo Ja-eun, LS Corp, CEO Myung Roe-hyun and LS C&S CEO Koo Bon-kyu —attended the completion ceremony.
Nexans announced that it has completed its acquisition of Reka Cables, a Finnish manufacturer of high-, medium- and low-voltage cables from Reka Industrial.
A press release said that the acquisition marks an additional milestone of Nexans’ ambition to become a pure electrification player committed to contribute to carbon neutrality by 2030, focusing on the overall value chain.
Reka Cables, headquartered in Hyvinkää, Finland, has been providing high-quality cables to customers in the energy, infrastructure, and building sectors for over 60 years. The company operates three manufacturing plants in Finland which will be complementing Nexans’ existing operations in Sweden and Norway. In 2022, Reka Cables reported current sales of €172 million and an EBITDA of €11 million.
Lars Josefsson, general manager BU Nordics, Nexans, lauded the acquisition. “Together we can do even more to solve the greatest challenge of our time, the climate transition, and accelerate electrification both here in the Nordic region and the rest of the world.”
Josefsson said that one of the sustainability goals of Nexans is that 95% of everything sold in the Nordic region be produced in the Nordic region by 2025. “By the integration of Reka, we reach 90% local production, and are well on our way to reaching the goal ahead of time.”
The Wire Association International (WAI), Inc. reports that INTERWIRE 2023 made a successful return to its biennial schedule at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, May 9-11. The exposition and conference engaged 3,184 wire and cable industry professionals representing 43 states and 42 countries at its first in-person showing since 2019.
Attendance included representatives from 285 wire and cable manufacturing operations.
Keynote presenters Srinivas Siripurapu, Chief Innovation and R&D Officer, Prysmian; and Rich Stinson, President and CEO of Southwire Co., drew much interest on May 9 and May 10, respectively, with their insights on an electrified future. At the Awards Ceremony Mr. Stinson received the inaugural WAI Champion Award, which honors an industry executive for his/her strong support of The Wire Association and its mission.
EXHIBITS
335 exhibiting companies participated at INTERWIRE to showcase the latest products and developed technologies available to wire and cable manufacturers; 80 product categories were represented. WAI introduced more than 30 new exhibiting companies to the INTERWIRE this year.
HIGHLIGHTS
Other features included two presentations by former astronaut Mary Ellen Weber sharing her experiences of space flight; as well as segments on Industry 4.0, the Workforce, Extrusion/Polymers, Industry Outlook; technical sessions; a Mordica lecture; and production solutions demonstrations. New for fun and networking this year were the Welcome Reception at Mercedes-Benz Stadium; the in-hall Beer Garden, sponsored by Rainbow Rubber; and the Cornhole Zone, sponsored by James Monroe Wire & Cable Corp.
WAI’s popular Fundamentals of Wire Manufacturing course—offered as a pre-show option on May 8—had record-breaking attendance, engaging 209 participants.
Commenting on the activities 2023 WAI President Kurt Breischaft said, “Being back in Atlanta for Interwire this week has been awesome! Record attendance at our Fundamentals of Wire Manufacturing course underscores the continued need for the Wire Association International’s focus on education. Having technical experts willing to share with others is the heart of WAI.”
Interwire sponsors and support*:
Elite level: Encore Wire Corp.; James Monroe Wire & Cable Corp.; Lloyd & Bouvier Inc.; Prysmian Group; Rainbow Rubber and Plastics Inc.; SDI LaFarga COPPERWORKS; and Southwire Co. LLC.
Platinum level: Carris Reels Inc.; Davis-Standard LLC; Gem Gravure Co. Inc.; and Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp.
Gold level: SAMP Group and Sonoco Reels & Spools
Silver level: Enkotec Co. Inc.; Insteel Wire Products; The MGS Group; Niehoff Endex North America;
RichardsApex Inc.; SIKORA International Corp.; and Troester Machinery Ltd.
Bronze level: Baum’s Castorine; Fort Wayne Wire Die; and Precision Reel/Payoffs
* The Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association (WCISA) is an industry partner with WAI.
EVENT BACKGROUND:
Introduced in 1981, INTERWIRE is the largest and longest-running wire and cable marketplace in the Americas. Hosted biennially, Interwire is an international trade event that includes exhibiting companies, speakers, and visitors from around the world.
WAI, founded in 1930, is a not-for-profit association with more than 2,200 individual members in 50 countries. The association serves the educational needs of the wire and cable manufacturing industry through a variety of products and services. WAI manages the Interwire Trade Exhibition and the WAI Operations Summit & Wire Expo and publishes the Wire Journal International and the Wire Journal International Reference Guide.
Media Contacts: Janice E. Swindells, Director Marketing & Corporate Communications, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Tel.: 001-203-453-2777, x. 117; Steven J. Fetteroll, Executive Director, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Tel.: 001-203-453-1777.
The Wire Association International (WAI), Inc. reports that INTERWIRE 2023 made a successful return to its biennial schedule at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, May 9-11. The exposition and conference engaged 3,184 wire and cable industry professionals representing 43 states and 42 countries at its first in-person showing since 2019.
Attendance included representatives from 285 wire and cable manufacturing operations.
Keynote presenters Srinivas Siripurapu, Chief Innovation and R&D Officer, Prysmian; and Rich Stinson, President and CEO of Southwire Co., drew much interest on May 9 and May 10, respectively, with their insights on an electrified future. At the Awards Ceremony Mr. Stinson received the inaugural WAI Champion Award, which honors an industry executive for his/her strong support of The Wire Association and its mission.
EXHIBITS
335 exhibiting companies participated at INTERWIRE to showcase the latest products and developed technologies available to wire and cable manufacturers; 80 product categories were represented. WAI introduced more than 30 new exhibiting companies to the INTERWIRE this year.
HIGHLIGHTS
Other features included two presentations by former astronaut Mary Ellen Weber sharing her experiences of space flight; as well as segments on Industry 4.0, the Workforce, Extrusion/Polymers, Industry Outlook; technical sessions; a Mordica lecture; and production solutions demonstrations. New for fun and networking this year were the Welcome Reception at Mercedes-Benz Stadium; the in-hall Beer Garden, sponsored by Rainbow Rubber; and the Cornhole Zone, sponsored by James Monroe Wire & Cable Corp.
WAI’s popular Fundamentals of Wire Manufacturing course—offered as a pre-show option on May 8—had record-breaking attendance, engaging 209 participants.
Commenting on the activities 2023 WAI President Kurt Breischaft said, “Being back in Atlanta for Interwire this week has been awesome! Record attendance at our Fundamentals of Wire Manufacturing course underscores the continued need for the Wire Association International’s focus on education. Having technical experts willing to share with others is the heart of WAI.”
Interwire sponsors and support*:
Elite level: Encore Wire Corp.; James Monroe Wire & Cable Corp.; Lloyd & Bouvier Inc.; Prysmian Group; Rainbow Rubber and Plastics Inc.; SDI LaFarga COPPERWORKS; and Southwire Co. LLC.
Platinum level: Carris Reels Inc.; Davis-Standard LLC; Gem Gravure Co. Inc.; and Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp.
Gold level: SAMP Group and Sonoco Reels & Spools
Silver level: Enkotec Co. Inc.; Insteel Wire Products; The MGS Group; Niehoff Endex North America;
RichardsApex Inc.; SIKORA International Corp.; and Troester Machinery Ltd.
Bronze level: Baum’s Castorine; Fort Wayne Wire Die; and Precision Reel/Payoffs
* The Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association (WCISA) is an industry partner with WAI.
EVENT BACKGROUND:
Introduced in 1981, INTERWIRE is the largest and longest-running wire and cable marketplace in the Americas. Hosted biennially, Interwire is an international trade event that includes exhibiting companies, speakers, and visitors from around the world.
WAI, founded in 1930, is a not-for-profit association with more than 2,200 individual members in 50 countries. The association serves the educational needs of the wire and cable manufacturing industry through a variety of products and services. WAI manages the Interwire Trade Exhibition and the WAI Operations Summit & Wire Expo and publishes the Wire Journal International and the Wire Journal International Reference Guide.
Media Contacts: Janice E. Swindells, Director Marketing & Corporate Communications, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Tel.: 001-203-453-2777, x. 117; Steven J. Fetteroll, Executive Director, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Tel.: 001-203-453-1777.
South Korea’s LS Cable & System (LS C&S) will supply submarine cables worth approximately $85 million to the Taiwan Power Company (TPC) for a wind farm to be built off the west coast of Taiwan.
A press release said that the order is from Foxwell Energy, an energy enterprise based in Taiwan and the builder of the upcoming construction project. Taiwan will complete a 5.5 GW wind farm as the first offshore wind farm construction project by 2025, and develop an additional 15 GW wind farm by 2023. To produce 1 GW of electric power, a nation needs to build about 20 nuclear power plants.
By winning this contract, LS C&S won the right to supply ultra-high-voltage submarine cables for all eight sub-projects in the first offshore wind farm construction project in Taiwan. The total contract amount so far has reached about 900 billion won (US$697 million).
Per an article in BusinessKorea, an LS C&S official said that the size of additional submarine cable orders to be placed, starting this year, is expected to reach about 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion). “Based on our overwhelming submarine cable manufacturing capabilities and experience, we are seeking to expand our business through cooperation and market development with KT Submarine.”
LS C&S recently acquired a stake in KT Submarine, a company specializing in installing submarine cables, to strengthen its capabilities. LS C&S has also further strengthened its cooperation with other global offshore wind business operators such as Ørsted and CIP based in Denmark, Jan De Nul based in Belgium, and WPD based in Germany through their respective projects as it continues to accelerate its expansion in the European and North American markets.