TenneT, the largest electric grid operator in the Netherlands and Germany, announced that it has awarded contracts approximately €1.5 billion to multiple companies building high-tension wires.

A press release said that TenneT has signed a multi-year contract (Corporate Framework Agreement) with the following eight contract partners following a tendering procedure: Brugg Kabel of Switzerland, LS Cable & System and Taihan of South Korea, NKT GmbH & Co KG and Suedkabel GmbH of Germany, Prysmian and TKF of the Netherlands, and TBEA Shandong Luneng Taishan Cable Co., Ltd. of China.

These partners will supply and install the cables for the 110, 150, 220 and 380 kV onshore high-voltage AC connections in Germany and the Netherlands on behalf of TenneT. “In the coming years, we will construct some 900 km of high-voltage in Germany and TenneT will realize some 4,000 km of high-voltage in the Netherlands.”

TenneT intends to spend as much as 100 billion euros in the coming decade to build out electric grids onshore and offshore as electricity from renewable sources increasingly replaces fossil fuels. It also explained how the company is evolving. “TenneT realises that expanding the electricity grid involves a lot of work. That is one of the reasons for working intensively with these specialised companies. By focusing on long-term partnerships that create a stable collaboration, parties can focus more on innovation and adjust the production process and machinery. Specifically, we will see this reflected in improved materials and design optimisation in the coming years. And, more importantly, we see more opportunities to develop longer cables in one piece (depending on voltage level) up to 5,000 meters.

“Where we currently still work with cables of around 1,500 metres, within two years we will already be laying cables with a length of 3 to 3.5 kilometres. Lengths that can soon also be realised with drilling. And that really is a step forward in terms of burdening the environment during construction, but also in terms of failures, speed and so on.”

The last acquisition by Prysmian, the world’s largest cable manufacturer, was its largest ever: a $3 billion deal for U.S.-based General Cable that was completed in 2018. Per a report in Reuters, the company may make another deal in the year or two.

The Reuters story said that during an analyst call, Chief Executive Valerio Battista said that “until recently M&A ‘was a suicide’ due to sky-high valuations.” That situation is changing, and Prysmian has a healthy balance sheet that allows it to pursue opportunities. “Frankly speaking, I believe that in the next 12-24 months ... some of our competitors may come to the door,” he said.

No potential acquisitions were cited in the article, which noted that Prysmian expects a cash flow of between €550-650 million this year, topping prior guidance.

 CommScope^® reports that it plans to invest $60.3 million over the next four years to expand its manufacturing facilities based in North Carolina to bolster its ability to meet U.S. supply demands driven by federal initiatives.

 A press release said that CommScope currently has the capacity to manufacture drop cable at a rate of approximately two billion feet per year at its U.S. facilities, a level of production that will allow states and their partners to connect every underserved American as a part of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. The expansion in Catawba County is expected to create at least 250 new jobs.

The expansion will further allow CommScope to manufacture the necessary cable for service providers to deploy broadband across the U.S. Capacity increase will align around loose tube production and additional fiber cable counts and styles needed for rural deployment, including CommScope’s HeliARC^™ fiber optic cable that is specifically designed for rural fiber network architecture.

“Broadband for everyone is no longer a luxury, but rather a critical necessity to participate in today’s society and economic market,” said CommScope President and CEO Chuck Treadway. “We have long been committed to supplying our partners with the solutions necessary to bring broadband to everyone. Furthering our long-standing relationship with the State of North Carolina is a great next step to bring ‘Internet For All’, and we are thrilled to work with the State on this endeavor.

Prime Materials Recovery, Inc. (PMR), announced that it is buying an SCR copper rod system from Southwire for installation at its subsidiary, IMC - Metals America, LLC (IMC), in Shelby, North Carolina.

A press release said that the new line—the SCR 4500— will be installed in a purpose-built plant at the existing site, and mark the business’s entry into the ETP copper rod market. Sitework is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2023 and bring 75-80 new jobs to Cleveland County, North Carolina.

PMR noted that in a separate initiative, IMC, one of North America’s largest producers of oxygen-free (OF) copper, will be increasing its copper rod production capacity with the purchase and installation of a new line from Upcast OY based in Pori, Finland.

“We are extremely pleased to be partnering with industry leaders like Southwire and Upcast OY with these initiatives,” said PMR CEO Bernie Schilberg. “We look forward to these successful projects and years of effectively serving our customers and these markets.”

Per PMR, each month it processes and brokers in excess of 35 million pounds of nonferrous metals at its facilities. It also actively participates in the global metal market via its import and export capabilities. PMR and its holding company represent one of the largest nonferrous and polymer merchants, processors, and fabricators in the United States. Based in East Hartford, Connecticut, the business includes facilities in Canastota, New York; South Windsor and Willimantic, Connecticut; Jersey City, New Jersey; Hickory and Shelby, North Caroline; Orangeburg, South Carolina; Miami, Florida; and Wilmington, Delaware.

The SCR-4500 system is designed for a production rate of 35 metric tons per hour of eight mm rod. The project includes the design of all operating equipment from a skip cart furnace loader to a finished rod handling system. The system will include an 11 stand Morgan “No Twist^®” rolling mill, furnished by Primetals Technologies.

“We would like to welcome IMC into the SCR family and look forward to many years of successful collaboration,” said Mark Roden, Southwire’s vice president of SCR Technologies. “It is through our continued support and the SCR Technology Pool that this relationship will continue to grow for many years to come.”

NKT reports that it has signed a long-term contract with major European copper producer KGHM S.A. to ensure that it will get the copper rod it needs for 2023-2027.

 A press release said that the expansion of renewable energy sources has led to considerable increased demand for copper. To secure that essential supply NKT signed a long-term agreement with Polish copper supplier KGHM S.A. for an annual minimum of 52,500 metric tons of copper wire rod for 2023-2027, with an option to expand quantities and extend the contractual period.

“We are pleased to strengthen our long-term collaboration with KGHM by entering into this frame agreement for the supply of copper rod for the coming years,” said NKT President & CEO Claes Westerlind. “And even more so, that we are able to source copper close to where it is needed, which supports our efforts to reduce the environmental impact of our operations.”

KGHM is an integrated copper producer with its own mineral resources, mines, smelters and copper rod production facilities in Europe. KGHM’s Głogów and Legnica copper smelters/refineries and Cedynia wire rod plant are Copper Mark certified. In line with its commitment to connect a greener world, NKT has also joined the Copper Mark to promote responsible copper mining and production.