4/1/2022 - The Prysmian Group has been awarded a contract worth approximately €1.2 billion for supplying a full-package 725-km submarine cable interconnector that will directly link the German and U.K. electricity grids for the first time.

A press release said that the order, from NeuConnect Britain Limited and NeuConnect Deutschland GmbH, calls for the turn-key design, manufacturing, installation, testing and commissioning of the 1400 MW submarine and land cable system. It will connect two of Europe’s largest energy markets, promoting the efficient use and integration of renewable energy generation resources in both Germany and the U.K.

The NeuConnect interconnector is a privately financed project developed by a group of international investors that include Meridiam, Allianz Capital Partners and Kansai Electric Power, and is contingent on the successful tendering of the converter station and financing agreements for the project.

“When completed in the coming years, NeuConnect will join the world’s longest interconnectors,” said Hakan Ozmen, EVP Projects, Prysmian Group. “Moreover, it is one of the first interconnectors to be financed through a project financing arrangement, demonstrating that the major infrastructure projects needed to deliver the sustainable energy goals in Europe are supported by private investment.”

The project shall deliver the cable connection along a route which runs between the U.K. converter station located on the Isle of Grain in Kent (U.K.), passing through the U.K., Dutch and German waters to the landing point in Lower Saxony in Germany, where it will connect with the converter station near Wilhelmshaven. The NeuConnect project shall provide major energy transmission infrastructure that shall contribute to the wider European goals for increased availability of economically beneficial, sustainable, and secure electrical power.

Prysmian will provide the complete cable system to be operated at ±525kV HVDC utilizing mass-impregnated (MI) paper insulated cables, and include fiber optic cables on the land and selected submarine sections, complemented with state-of-the-art cable monitoring systems that shall support the monitoring, maintenance and services to be provided during the warranty period.

The submarine and land power cables will be manufactured at Prysmian’s Arco Felice factory near Naples, Italy. Offshore installation activities will involve three of the Group’s own cable-laying vessels. Commissioning of the project is scheduled in the second half of the decade.

The NeuConnect project joins the latest record-breaking awards to the Prysmian Group and follows projects such as Viking Link, the connection currently under installation between Denmark and U.K., as well as the recent successful awards of the major framework contract by Terna developing a more robust power grid in Italy and the strategic link connecting Saudi Arabia and Egypt by SEC and EETC respectively.

3/10/2022  Citing the disturbing events in Ukraine, the Supervisory Board of Messe Düsseldorf announced that it has decided to suspend the group’s business activities in Russia until further notice. It has also agreed to take in Ukrainian refugees at the Fairgrounds.

A press release said that the decision includes the activities of its subsidiary, Messe Düsseldorf Moscow. “The whole city of Düsseldorf is thinking of the people in Ukraine,” said Dr. Stephan Keller, Lord Mayor of the state capital Düsseldorf, and chairman of the Supervisory Board of Messe Düsseldorf. “After we have already put the city partnership between Moscow and Düsseldorf on ice, it is only logical that Messe Düsseldorf, as a subsidiary of the city, also suspends its activities in Russia for the time being.”

Added Wolfram N. Diener, CEO & president of Messe Düsseldorf, "The current events contradict the mission and values of our company, which is to create international marketplaces for free, cross-border intercultural and economic exchange.” The next scheduled staging of wire Moscow, to held at the Krasnaya Presnya, is in the summer of 2023.

The Messe also announced that by March 1, a thousand cots had been set up in Hall 6 to accommodate Ukrainian refugees who had fled their homeland. By the end of the day, they all were filled.

“On the day of construction, a large number of colleagues spontaneously lent a hand to make the accommodation possible as quickly as possible,” said Diener, who noted that the trade show organizer was pleased to accommodate a request from the Office for Migration and Integration of the city of Düsseldorf. “Because we are moved by the fate of the people. And because we are deeply moved by the plight of the refugees. Receiving and accommodating them is a matter of course for us.”

The cots were set up in Hall 6, which covers more than 25,000 sq m, by the Messe, working with the German Red Cross and the Düsseldorf Fire Department. Some 2,500 meters of partition walls were erected to divide the hall into smaller rooms. Hall 6 has its own changing rooms and 40 shower places. Capacity is supplemented by external shower containers. Catering will be provided by Stockheim, Messe Düsseldorf’s catering partner. All refugees will also have access to free WiFi, which will enable them to keep in touch with family and friends and to find out about developments in Ukraine.

At LinkedIn, the news was warmly greeted, including kudos from Sebastian K. of QUICKFairs, who wrote, “Make fairs, not war.”

3/9/2022  The Wire Association International (WAI), Inc. reports that two keynote speakers are scheduled to present on consecutive days at its Operations Summit & Wire Expo, at the Hyatt Regency Dallas, Dallas, Texas, USA, June 7-8, 2022.

Tuesday, June 7 - “The new normal in raw material procurement for the wire and cable industry”
Keynote speaker Brian Schulties, the Chief Procurement Officer for Prysmian Group North America, will share his insights into the opportunities and challenges facing the supply chain in the wire and cable industry in this era of tight supplies.

Wednesday, June 8 - “Leadership in a volatile world”
Keynote speaker Ty Garrison, Senior Vice President of Operations, at Commercial Metals Company, will discuss how the last few years have strained businesses across the globe as Covid forced companies to deal with events like virtual work, burn out, unprecedented supply chain disruptions and volatile markets. The need to successfully navigate these situations puts immense pressure on leadership at every level of an organization. When we shift our mindset and view the pressures of leading a team as a privilege rather than a burden, leaders rise to the occasion and companies thrive.

View the full program and event details at www.wireexpo22.com

WAI has the generous support of the following sponsors:
Platinum: Carris Reels Inc.; Encore Wire; Gem Gravure Co. Inc.; James Monroe Wire & Cable Corp., Prysmian Group; SDI LaFarga Inc.; Southwire Co.; and Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp; Gold: Insteel Industries Inc.; and Lloyd & Bouvier Inc.; Silver: Niehoff Endex; and Sikora International Corp.; Bronze: Baum’s Castorine; NDC Technologies; Precision Payoff Systems; and RichardsApex Inc.

The Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association (WCISA) is an industry partner with WAI.

Contact WAI’s Pierce Whelan, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for details about exhibiting and/or sponsorships.

About the Organizer:
WAI, founded in 1930, is a not-for-profit association with nearly 1,800 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.

3/4/2022  The war in Ukraine is proving a tense time for cable producers like Leoni, Nexans and TFKabel which have units located in the Ukraine. In this Insight we have a brief look at how producers are dealing with the unfolding situation and also what role Russia and Ukraine play in the cable markets in general. We will provide a further update next week. The CRU International Report says...

Effect on producers located in the Ukraine

At the time of writing, France’s Nexans told CRU that it is monitoring the situation and continues running two out of its three automotive wiring harness plants that it has in the Ukraine. The plants of Peremyschljany and Zolochiv are still running. However, its unit at Brody has been temporarily stopped. The three units employ a total of 2771 people.

“We are in close and regular contact with our customers, and we are following the situation very closely in order to adapt as best we can and avoid any disruption to our business. Safety of our employees is our absolute priority. The evolution of the situation is being closely monitored and will adapt to the extent possible the protection measures of our employees on the sites,” a spokesperson told CRU.

Germany’s Leoni told CRU Wire & Cable News that it has stopped production of wiring harnesses at both its sites in the Ukraine, which employ 7,000 people. Leoni production is located at Stryji and Kolomyja in the southwest of the country in regions close to the EU border. “The safety of our employees is our top priority. Immediately after the combat operations began, we decided to temporarily suspend our production at both plants and send our employees home until the situation can be better evaluated," a Leoni spokesperson said.

The company said that a dedicated task force will closely monitor the course of the conflict and its impact on the company’s sites, and is also in constant contact with customers and suppliers.

Labor-intensive wiring harness production, which uses LVE cable is one of the main activities for cable producers located in the Ukraine. As shown in the chart on the left-hand side of Figure 1, LVE cable makes up 48% of total insulated metallic wire and cable production in the Ukraine.

Sanctions on Russia

“With regard to the impact of international sanctions on Russia, we are monitoring the situation very closely to enable us to adapt and limit the potential impact on our supply chain. Russia and CIS represent less than 0.5% of our Group sales,” a Nexans spokesperson explained.

CRU data shows that Russian wire and cable production is predominately made up of power cables (71%), with LVE cables comprising 26%. The country’s impact on the wider cable market is relatively minimal. It only has a 2% share of total European exports and 4% share of East European exports. Over the past three years, Russia’s two main export destinations have been Kazakhstan and Belarus. Both countries accounted for 61.2% of total Russian cable exports.

Meanwhile, China and Belarus made up 63.1% of the cable imports into Russia for 2021.

The effect of a further escalation of the conflict on Ukraine’s cable trade is uncertain. Poland is an important trade partner for the Ukraine, both for imports and exports (see Table 1). In 2021, most of the exports to Poland were for wiring harnesses (72.5%) and LVE cables (25.5%), while the majority of imports were for LVE cable (90.1%).

CRU will be keeping subscribers up to date over the coming weeks. Visit the CRU website for more information by visiting: https://www.crugroup.com/

Note: This report