The UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) announced that it will support an investment in subsea HVDC cable manufacturer XLCC to develop a new world-leading factory in Hunterston in Scotland.

A press release said that the funding consists of an initial £20 million from the UKIB with an option to invest a further £67 million upon XLCC achieving specific development and funding milestones.

“The financing will help XLCC develop its factory in Hunterston, Scotland, which once completed will have capacity to produce thousands of km each year of leading edge HVDC cable,” the release said. The UKIB commitment is complemented by additional investment from existing and new investors. This is incremental to the funding of over £40 million raised by the company to date, to design the product, complete detailed design activities for the factory and to achieve full planning permission at the site.

“The project is firmly in line with the Bank’s twin missions to help tackle climate change and support regional and local economic growth,” the release said. Once complete the Hunterston factory will create around 900 permanent jobs including over 200 apprenticeships.

Ian Douglas, XLCC’s CEO, said that XLCC’s mission is to provide critical elements of the infrastructure that are essential to the energy transition and will reduce project costs to the benefit of the U.K. consumer.

XLCC’s already has its first order: four 3,800-km-long cables to connect solar and wind renewable power generation in the Sahara to the U.K. for the Xlinks Morocco-UK power project. “We look forward to delivering a factory of great local and international importance for HVDC subsea cable,” said XLCC Project Director Alan Mathers. “The U.K. will be positioned as a world leader in the green economy, with the site at Hunterston playing a key role in connecting cheap, green energy from renewables projects around the world.”

Primetals Technologies has recently completed an installation at Baoshan Iron and Steel in Shanghai, China, for a new combination mill featuring both a wire rod mill outlet and bar-in-coil line to produce 600,000 tons per year of wire rod and bar products.

A press release said that the installation is Baoshan’s first greenfield long-rolling investment since the original mill installation in 1998. The new mill is designed to increase rolling mill capacity and expand the size range so the wire rod mill outlet can handle 7.5-mm to 29-mm rod and the bar-in-coil line can handle 8-mm to 50-mm bar.

To reduce downtime, Primetals Technologies used four eDrive mini-finishing mills with 250 mm ultra-heavy-duty roll housings for integrated single-family rolling from a standardized mill train. The eDrive, one of the company’s newest long-rolling solutions, is designed to increase load-carrying capacity, reduce long-term costs and enable low-temperature thermomechanical rolling, using quick-change roll units.

The project included equipment supply, engineering, and site supervision services as an open consortium between Baowu Steel Group and Primetals Technologies. The full list of equipment included four eDrive mini-finishing mills, guide optics, a pinch roll and laying head, the latest high-speed pouring reels, as well as a mechatronics package comprising the mechanical software necessary for this key equipment.

“The Primetals Technologies high-speed rod mill eDrive and bar-in-coil technology has been well received and the progress of the project has been highly praised by all parties,” the release said.

Baoshan Iron and Steel is a subsidiary of state-owned Baowu Steel Group that is located in Shanghai. It owns four plants located in Shanghai, Nanjing, Zhanjiang and Wuhan. The steel service company specializes in stainless steel and carbon steel alloys, including wire rod products, since the late 1990s.

RichardsApex, a U.S.-based manufacturer and supplier of specialty metalworking lubricants, process coatings and cleaning compounds, announced that it has launched a wholly owned subsidiary in Singapore: RichardsApex International PE Ltd.

A press release said that the new entity will bolster the company’s ability to serve changing market needs. “As worldwide metalworking demands continue to expand and intensify, so does the commitment of RichardsApex in providing knowledgeable, experienced, and professional personnel available to manufacture, distribute, and service all metalworking markets. This strategically located subsidiary combines our growing global network, including distributors and agents, who are ready to serve the needs of our customers throughout the world.”

The Singapore subsidiary’s operations team will be managed by Vishal Handa, who joined RichardsApex in 2019. Customers can access RichardsApex products through the subsidiary, and customers are invited to review the enhanced sales and service network via the company’s website: www.richardsapex.com. RichardsApex also has a European subsidiary: RichardsApex Europe Ltd.

Erbil Copper & Cable Company for General Trading-Ltd. (Erbil Cable) reports that it has begun operations at its site, where it will produce 8-mm copper wire rod from scrap and copper wire and cable. At its website, the company notes that it is the first copper wire and cable factory in the Kurdistan region.

Per reports posted online at www.kurdistan24.net and gulanmedia.com, Erbil Cable initially became a business entity in 2020, and the project began in 2021. Construction was completed by the end of 2023, and the operations—which include the formation of Erbil Mercury and Cable Company—was inaugurated Oct. 2 by Masrour Barzani, who serves as the prime minister of the Kurdistan Region.

Barzani said that developing the industrial sector strengthens the economic infrastructure of the Kurdistan Region. He promised support for Erbil Cable’s efforts to export its products abroad. “We want the industrial sector to surpass the borders of Kurdistan.”

Per one report, Erbil Cable will provide copper wire and cable to the Kurdistan Region, Iraq and other countries in the zone. It will also provide some support and services to all large industries, contractors and businessmen in the Kurdistan Region. Erbil Cable representative Sadiq Mohammed said that Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region, has previously sent copper waste abroad for recycling and subsequent reimport. “Now, the company will undertake this process domestically.”

The project, said to cost more than $80 million, includes six factories that cover an area of ​​175,000 sq m that employs nearly 200 people, 160 of whom are local. Erbil Cable and Erbil Mercury were said to have annual production capacity of 80,000 metric tons, which includes 30,000 metric tons from recycled copper scrap.

Sweden’s Lesjӧfors Group reports that the company has finalized its previously announced acquisition of Ressorts Lacroix, a French spring manufacturer that will expand the Group’s European spring supply solutions.

A press release said that Ressorts Lacroix’s product lines serve the hydraulic, automotive, aerospace and medical sector. Lacroix has annual revenue of €6.5 million with good profitability and has 46 employees at its factory in Meung-sur-Loire in central France.

Per its website, the company, founded in 1951, is located in the center of Northern France in Meung-sur-Loire, where it has a 4,000 sq m workshop. Its products include custom-made springs, flat springs, tension springs, torsion springs and compression springs.

“Our potential is now limitless,” said Ressorts Lacroix CEO Yohan Dutheil. “Lesjӧfors, as a global parent company, enables us to access new markets. Being part of a larger corporation not only gives us greater reach, it also enables us to access sales strategies, knowledge, technologies and networks that enrich our employees and adds value to our customers.”

Lesjӧfors Group CEO Ola Tengroth said that the company was “laser focused” on acquiring Ressorts Lacroix. “We’re grateful to them for enabling us to now say we have a manufacturing plant in France, and we look forward to developing this partnership even further.”

Earlier this year, the Lesjӧfors Group opened a new manufacturing facility in Poland alongside an existing plant that is part of Alcomex, its subsidiary, which has operations in nine countries. At that time, the Lesjӧfors Group was said to have more than 50 production and technical sales offices in Europe, America and Asia, and was “actively looking to acquire more spring manufacturers.”

The Lesjöfors Group is owned by Beijer Alma, a listed company on the Stockholm Stock Exchange.