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Carlisle Companies Incorporated (CCI) announced that it has completed its $2 billion sale of its Carlisle Interconnect Technologies (CIT) unit to Amphenol Corporation, ending its direct activity in the wire and cable field.

A press release said that the sale of CIT “aligns with our Vision 2030 strategy and represents a significant milestone in our strategic pivot from a diversified industrial portfolio of businesses to a premier pure play building products company.”

Per the Carlisle website, the business started operations in Tarrytown, New York in 1940 as Tensolite, a name that it said stood for the finest in miniature insulated wire and cable. The first insulated wire product produced by the company was used to electrically heat the gloves and flight suits of World War II Air Force pilots. In 1959, Carlisle Interconnect Technologies (then Tensolite) became part of Carlisle Companies Incorporated, which will focus on innovative building envelope products and solutions for more energy efficient buildings

Last modified on June 18, 2024

TT Cables, based in Bosnia-Herzegovina, announced that it has launched a new factory to make low-voltage cables in Macedonia, that will be located at the IGM Industrial Park on Negotino.

A press release said that the company is investing some 20 million euros in the new factory, which covers 20,000 sq m and will have some 90 employees. The factory will have a capacity of approximately 30,000 tons of cables across 30 production lines. It will deploy cutting-edge, highly automated machinery and production lines, allowing for maximum efficiency and scalability.

The industrial park, located in North Macedonia near the highway, railway station and airport, will apply cutting-edge technology and sustainable manufacturing practices. The decision to build the plant stemmed from an assessment of the sales potential for the low-voltage cables (signal, control and instrumentation) in the region and throughout Europe as being significantly greater than our current production capabilities.

The factory will be part of the IT Cables Group, which has more than 400 employees and sells its products in more than 50 countries worldwide. The Group has a distribution network through its subsidiaries in Lithuania (TT Cables Nordic UAB), Austria (TT Cables GmbH Austria), Croatia (TT Kabeli doo Croatia), Serbia (TT Kabeli doo Serbia), Bosnia and Herzegovina (TT Kabeli doo Bosna and Herzegovina), and the next factory in North Macedonia (Kabeks Kables dooel - TT Kabeli Macedonia).

The TT Group, founded in 2007, is based in Široki Brijeg (Bosnia and Herzegovina) where its head office is located as well as its production facilities.

“We are looking forward to the opening of the new factory, which we believe will serve as a stepping-stone for our ambitious plans in the future,” the release said. It added that construction work and machine orders are already underway, and that the new factory is expected to open in the second half of this year, “ushering in a new chapter and era for the entire TT Cables Group.”

Mueller Industries has agreed to acquire Nehring Electrical Works Mueller Industries, Inc., (Nehring) and some of its affiliated firms, for approximately US$575 million. The deal is subject to customary purchase price adjustments.

A press release said that Nehring, based in DeKalb, Illinois, produces wire and cable solutions for the utility, telecom, electrical distribution and OEM markets. Operating through its three business units (Nehring Electrical Works Company, Conex Cable, LLC and Unified Wire & Cable, Inc.), Nehring supplies numerous utilities, REAs, municipalities, telecoms and electrical distribution companies throughout the U.S. For its last fiscal year, Nehring’s annual net sales were approximately US$400 million.

At Nehring’s website, the company notes that it is one of the few U.S.-based companies manufacturing both copper and aluminum conductors. Also, it “has been producing wire and cable products longer than any wire mill in the Midwest.” The company was founded in 1912 by Paul A. Nehring, who invented many of the machines used for covering copper with braided cotton. The family business was sold several times, including to Coleman Cable Company, and had been owned by a private partnership group since 1995.

“This acquisition provides a substantial platform for long-term growth in the electrical and power infrastructure space and complements the other critical infrastructure sectors we support,” said Mueller CEO Greg Christopher. “With its operational culture, which is well aligned with our own, the addition of Nehring leverages our deep expertise in metals, particularly copper and aluminum extrusion, and provides synergies to both companies.”

Based in Collierville, Tennessee, Mueller manufactures copper, brass, aluminum and plastic products. It operates locations throughout the U.S. as well as Canada, Mexico, Great Britain, South Korea, the Middle East and China.

Hitachi Energy reports that it has entered into a multi-year agreement to provide high-voltage cable for what will be a record-sized U.S. project.

A press release said that Hitachi Energy will suppy Pattern Energy for its high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technologies for the SunZia Transmission Project. The link will connect the 3,515-megawatt (MW) SunZia Wind project in New Mexico to Arizona and Western states, which when completed will be one of the world’s largest transmission links delivering renewable energy.

Hitachi Energy will provide its HVDC Light® technology that is designed to efficiently transfer and integrate huge volumes of wind power. The project will stretch more than 885 km into the regional power grid. When complete, SunZia Wind will have a total power capacity of 3,515 MW, enough clean, renewable electricity to provide power to approximately three million Americans. The HVDC link will transmit up to 3,000 MW of this power to Arizona. The HVDC Light system will be the largest voltage source converter (VSC) installation in the United States.

Pattern Energy is one of the world’s largest privately owned developers and operators of renewable energy and transmission projects. Multi-year agreement provides service solutions to the SunZia Transmission Project, linking New Mexico’s wind farms to Arizona’s grid, increasing renewable energy to Western States.

LS Eco Energy (CEO Lee Sang-ho) announced two separate contracts that will see it provide cable to Denmark.

A press release said that one is for the company to supply high-voltage cables to Denmark for a North Sea wind farm project. The order, worth approximately $13 million, is for 220 kV underground cables for use in the 1 GW Thor offshore wind farm, which was described as Denmark’s largest. It will be built 22 km from a North Sea port and is scheduled to be completed in 2027.

The second order was from Energinet, for extra-high voltage cables valued at approximately $30.5 million. Energinet is the Danish national transmission system operator for electricity and natural gas. It operates the 400 kV electricity transmission grid and the gas transmission grid.The company owns and operates also 132 kV and 150 kV power grids (Regionale Net) and the HVDC Great Belt Power Link.

LS Eco Energy, which started exporting cables to Denmark in 2017, has established itself as a leading supplier to the Danish high-voltage cable market along with LS Cable & System. LS Eco Energy was established by LS Cable & System in 1996 for the purpose of entering the domestic market in Vietnam. It has now established itself as a major export company of Vietnam, with exports to Europe and North America accounting for 30% of sales.

 “Demand for electric wires is rapidly increasing worldwide due to the construction of offshore wind farms, replacement of old power grids, and construction of data centers,” said LS Eco Energy CEO Lee Sang-ho

Amphenol Corporation has officially opened a new plant in Vietnam that is expected to be at full operational capacity by the end of this month.

A press release said that Amphenol RF Vietnam Company, based in Ho Chi Minh City, is Amphenol’s fifth division investment. It also is expected to be a strong area, with a revenue target of $20 million by the end of next year “demonstrating their confidence in the Vietnamese market and their commitment to growth.”

Bill Callahan, group general manager - RF, Optics and Broadband Division at Amphenol, explained that the company invested in the new factory because it was impressed by the vibrant community. He lauded the work ethic and determination of the people there. “If you think back when we started five years ago, it was right before Covid, and so the inception was just then. Then Covid struck, and the team here found a way. Without the ability of people to travel from the United States or from anywhere ... the team found a way to make it happen. And that is just a memory that I will never forget.”

Amphenol, which reported 2023 sales of $12.6 billion, had some 95,000 employees at the end of last year.

LS business reports 2 recent contracts,

A subsidiary of Hellenic Cables plans to build a new, cable manufacturing facility in Baltimore, Maryland, that will see an investment of some $300 million.

Per media reports, the subsidiary, Hellenic Cables Americas, will use the plant to manufacture underwater and underground cables for offshore wind and grid modernization applications. The project was estimated to cost about $300 million. Of note, the project is being bolstered by Hellenic Cables Americas successfully getting a transferable tax credit from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) up to $58 million for the project.

Hellenic Cables Americas plans to acquire a 38-acre waterfront property at Wagners Point in Baltimore once its ongoing due diligence process is completed, which could be as soon as this month.

News about the project came from Belgium’s Cenergy Holding, whose industrial portfolio includes Hellenic Cable and Corinth Pipeworks. Hellenic Cable is one of the largest cable producers in Europe, manufacturing power and telecom cables as well as submarine cables.

Japan’s Sumitomo Electric Industries (SEI) and its subsea cable installation partner, Van Oord Offshore Wind UK (the Sumitomo Electric Van Oord Consortium) has been named the preferred bidder for the proposed Shetland 2 High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) link subsea cable for SSEN Transmission.

A press release said that independent electricity system operator, National Grid ESO, confirmed the need for a second HVDC link from Shetland to the main GB transmission system per “Beyond 2030,” its strategic network plan, “As well as helping enable the connection of three ScotWind offshore wind farm sites adjacent to Shetland, Shetland 2 will also support decarbonization and energy security ambitions, alongside helping further secure Shetland’s future electricity needs.”

Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands, is an archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands, and Norway. SSEN Transmission is the trading name for Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission, which is responsible for the electricity transmission network in the north of Scotland, maintaining and investing in the high voltage 132kV, 220kV, 275kV and 400kV electricity transmission network.

The Shetland 2 project helped SEI invest in its previously announced U.K. plant in Nigg. Construction of that high-voltage cable plant has begun, and it will have approximately 170 employees. “We now look forward to concluding contractual negotiations with the Sumitomo Electric Van Oord Consortium in the coming week and months,” said SSEN Managing Director Rob McDonald.

Scottish Government Energy Secretary Màiri McAllan said that the Scottish government is allocating up to £500 million to anchor the offshore wind supply-chain in Scotland to ensure our workforce, businesses and communities all benefit from the offshore renewables’ revolution. “This (latest) announcement gives us a further vote of confidence in that process and follows yesterday’s significant investment by the Scottish National Investment Bank in Ardersier Port. The Shetland 2 contract would underpin Sumitomo’s decision to locate its first European cable factory at Nigg and support hundreds of jobs in the Highlands.”

Contractual negotiations with SVOC will continue in advance of entering into Capacity Reservation Agreements and thereafter, Contract Award status for the Shetland 2 scheme later this year. In parallel, SSEN Transmission awaits the GB energy regulator, Ofgem, to conclude the development of the regulatory framework for Shetland 2 and other ‘Beyond 2030’ investments, with a decision on this expected shortly after.

LS GreenLink, a subsidiary of South Korea’s LS Cable & System Ltd. (LS C&S), plans to build a plant to make high-voltage submarine power cables in the U.S., a project that it notes is a part of a long-term strategic plan for global expansion.

A press release did not cite specific details about the size of the plant or the number of employees, but it did note that only one European company now operates a submarine cable factory in the U.S. LS C&S said that it “anticipates leveraging its early entry into the U.S. market to gain a significant competitive advantage while exploring opportunities to build submarine cable plants in Europe and Vietnam as well as in the United States.”

LS Green Link will get a substantial investment tax credit from the United States Department of Energy (DOE) as it has qualified for $99,060,000 in investment tax credits under Section 48C of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. That support will help LS GreenLink “meet the global surge in demand for submarine cables and alleviate the significant supply chain problems in the offshore wind industry in the United States,” said Daniel Ko, who heads LS C&S’s Global Submarine Cable System Division.

LS C&S has over 6,450 employees and 35 subsidiaries in 17 countries. It reported that it is in “the final stages of reviewing the site and the scale of investment for its U.S. high-voltage submarine power cable factory.”

Superior Essex, a global leader in the magnet wire and communication cables industry and a majority owner of the Essex Furukawa Magnet Wire joint venture with Furukawa Electric, announced that it has agreed to take over the remaining minority interest held by Furukawa Electric in Essex Furukawa.

A press release said that when the transaction is completed, Superior Essex will become the sole owner of the brand, assets and operations currently conducted by the global Essex Furukawa joint venture. Superior Essex plans to relaunch its magnet wire business under a new company name this year. This entity will continue to operate all current facilities of the Essex Furukawa joint venture around the world, which includes the Japanese and Malaysian (Kuala Lumpur) magnet wire facilities contributed by Furukawa Electric in October 2020.

“I want to thank the entire Furukawa Electric team,” Superior Essex CEO Daniel Choi said. “Over the last several years—operating together as Essex Furukawa—we have been able to create many successes.”

The collaboration between Superior Essex and Furukawa Electric in Essex Furukawa began in October 2020, with the aim of leveraging their combined experience and knowledge to drive innovation and deliver manufacturing excellence, technological advancement, and outstanding customer service.

The acquisition of Furukawa Electric’s minority interest in Essex Furukawa marks an important milestone for Superior Essex as it takes full control of its global operations and strengthens its commitment to delivering exceptional products and services to its customers worldwide.

Superior Essex is the parent brand of Essex Furukawa Magnet Wire, Superior Essex Communications, Essex Energy Italy, IVA, Lacroix + Kress, Hi-Wire, and Essex Brownell. It has over 3,000 employees in 11 countries, on three continents. Furukawa Electric Group has 127 group companies including Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd., and approximately 50,000 employees around the world.

Last modified on May 3, 2024

Arcole, a French private equity fund, has made a majority investment in Setic in partnership with longstanding shareholder and CEO Thierry Collard, who will continue in his current role.

A press release said that the investment will present a new phase of growth for Setic, a global leader in designing and manufacturing machinery for the wire and cable industry that is based in France in Roanne and Paris. The strategic investment aims at accelerating Setic’s development and enables a drastic deleveraging. “The company is thus in a very good position to capitalize on the favorable market trends anticipated in the coming years.”

Setic will fully embrace its role as a French industrial leader at the service of energy transition. The first steps on this path include enhancing the sales structure of the U.S. subsidiary, upgrading facilities in Roanne with new R&D capabilities, and rebranding the group as “Setic Pourtier” on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, combining the legacy of both historical brands. The presence of Arcole will not have an impact on customers.

Collard said that he was pleased with the deal. “I am delighted to have secured the redeployment of Setic Pourtier, keeping ownership in French hands and ensuring a promising future for our team while consolidating our growth trajectory that has taken us from a period of crisis to outstanding financial performance in just two years,” he said.

“We are thrilled about this investment, that gives Arcole the opportunity to support an industrial company with a French footprint and a global reach, based on a century-long legacy of technical excellence and innovation,” said Arcole Managing Partner Renaud Sueur. “I am very happy to partner with Thierry Collard, the CEO of Setic Pourtier, whose experience and knowledge of the market have been decisive in our will to invest in the Group.”

Bekaert and Edison Next have signed a 12-year on-site solar power purchase agreement (PPA) at the Bekaert plant in Sardinia, Italy.

A press release said that the 6.1 MW solar installation marks another major milestone in Bekaert’s sustainability strategy, Creating a Better Tomorrow. The PPA will see the installation of a photovoltaic system at the Bekaert plant in the province of Cagliari, Sardinia. The solar installation is capable of meeting more than 20% of the plant’s current energy requirements.

The photovoltaic system at the Sardinia plant will be completed and operative in 2025. Edison Next will finance, develop and manage the installation. Covering an area of about 23,000 sq m, the system is designed to produce more than 11.2 GWh a year and reduce annual emissions of about 3,000 metric tons of CO₂. Bekaert Sardinia expects to self-consume 93% of the renewable electricity generated.

“This state-of-the-art solar project at Bekaert’s Sardinia plant incorporates trackers that follow the path of the sun to optimize renewable energy production,” said Michael Hamilton, VP Procurement Commodities Category at Bekaert. “It will accelerate our sustainability ambitions as well as make us less dependent on energy price inflation. Since opening the solar plant in Burgos, Spain, last year this marks a next milestone to achieve the goal of reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 46.2% by 2030.”

“We are proud to be able to contribute to the sustainability goals of Bekaert, one of the Italian, European and global leaders in the steel sector,” said Marco Steardo, Industry Director of Edison Next. “The development of this large photovoltaic system in fact marks an important step in the decarbonization path of Bekaert Sardinia and the Bekaert Group in general towards their ambition of net zero by 2050.”

Last modified on May 3, 2024

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