Italy’s Danieli reports that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Emirates Steel Arkan for a carbon reduction project for its plant in Abu Dhabi.

A press release said that Emirates Steel Arkan wants to advance further toward carbon footprint reduction and is studying the possibility of installing an e-PGH (electrical Process Gas Heater) at the DRI plant. The company operates two low-emission minimills for long products that include wire rod using Energiron DRI technology and Hytemp pneumatic charging for hot DRI up to 600°C into the EAF.

The MoU was signed by Saeed Alghafri, CEO of Emirates Steel Arkan, and Rolando Paolone, CEO and CTO of Danieli, who met at Danieli’s headquarters in Italy. “This partnership marks a significant step forward in our commitment to innovation and technological excellence,” Alghafri said.

Emirates Steel Arkan is the UAE’s largest steel and building materials manufacturer. It is a leading wire rod producer in the GCC, with annual capacity of 550,000 mt at its high-speed wire rod mill that can produce 110 m of carbon steel wire rod per second.

A U.S. jury has awarded Prysmian $96,500,000 in damages from Sterlite Technologies, Inc., a business of India’s Sterlite Technologies Lt. (STL), for violations of trade secrets related to a former Prysmian executive who joined the company.

A press release said that on Aug. 6, at the end of a three-week trial, a U.S. District Court jury in Columbia, South Carolina, found in favor of Prysmian. Sterlite and Szymanski had denied wrong-doing.

In its June 2021 lawsuit, Prysmian had accused a former key executive, Stephen Szymanski, of providing Prysmian’s trade secrets to STL. The jury also awarded Prysmian $200,000 from Szymanski, who ran the company’s optical fiber cable business in North America before going to Sterlite, a direct competitor, in August 2020.

“At trial, Prysmian ultimately proved that Sterlite had taken thousands and thousands of pages of Prysmian’s confidential information and trade secrets,” the release said, noting that those included information about Prysmian’s customers, newest products and plans to expand its manufacturing plants. “Much of the information was found in the possession of not just Szymanski and Sterlite, but also in the possession of executives at Sterlite’s global headquarters in Pune, India.”

“This case came down to the basic principle of right versus wrong, and we are pleased that the jury came to this decision,” said Prysmian North America CEO Andrea Pirondini. “We will not stand still when it comes to defending our confidential information and trade secrets, competing fairly in the marketplace, and doing right by our customers.”

“Prysmian has a longstanding reputation for our quality products and our commitment to delivering innovative solutions in the telecommunications space,” said Patrick Jacobi, Prysmian North America Telecom senior vice president. “Securing a win in this case is a step in the right direction.”

On Sept. 16, 2023, STL, which is active in more than 150 countries, inaugurated its first U.S. cable manufacturing plant in Lugoff, South Carolina. Its focus is high fiber count cables with small diameters.  

In an STL statement, Managing Director Ankit Agarwal said that the company remains committed to serving customers in America. “We do not intend for this verdict to interrupt our plans to grow our U.S. presence. As a company, we uphold the highest standards of ethics and integrity.

We believe the verdict is not supported by the testimony and evidence presented at the trial and intend to appeal and vigorously pursue all available post-trial remedies.”

The Hengtong Group reports that one of its business units (Hengtong) has won the contract to supply 66 kV submarine cables project for the Landsnet project in Iceland.

Per its posting at LinkedIn, Hengtong will provide comprehensive services for the project, including design, supply, installation and testing of the three (3) submarine cable circuits. Scheduled for completion next summer, the new lines will greatly improve the safety of power transmission in that area.

“The award of this project marks a significant step in Hengtong’s strategic expansion within the Nordic and broader European energy markets,” said John Xu, the head of Hengtong Submarine Cable’s International Business Division. “We are eager to collaborate closely with Landsnet to enhance the security and efficiency of Iceland’s electricity transmission and grid infrastructure.”

 Hengtong, China’s largest power and fiber optic cable manufacturer, has more than 70 companies and holding companies, 12 manufacturing facilities and nine sales companies based in Europe, North America, South America, Africa, South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Southwire celebrated the grand opening of its Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) Customer Service Center (CSC)—located in  an area called AllianceTexas—with some 150 Southwire team members, leaders, community partners and guests gathered on August 22 to cut the ribbon on the company’s newest and largest distribution center.

A press release said that the nearly 1.2 million-sq-ft facility will distribute products for the full suite of Southwire solutions, including business segments such as commercial, residential, utility, industrial and Electrical Products & Engineered Solutions (EP&ES). The Southwire DFW CSC, which is expected to employ 250 team members, offers modernized storage solutions and automated material handling.

The ribbon cutting event featured remarks from Southwire leadership, as well as Ross Perot, Jr., Chairman of Hillwood, the developer behind AllianceTexas, a lunch celebration and tours of the facility.

Per reports, AllianceTexas—a Hillwood development—consists of 27,000 acres and is anchored by the world’s first dedicated industrial airport, Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport. It is home to 560 companies that have created more than 66,000 direct jobs.

The Prysmian Group announced that it has received a confirmation from Marinus Link Pty Ltd., a subsidiary of the Australian transmission systems operator (TSO) TasNetworks, for a project that will establish a new power interconnector between Tasmania and Victoria, Australia.

A press release said that Prysmian had reserved capacity for last year for the project, valued at approximately €300 million. Work will commence with the issuance of a notice to proceed, which is expected by August 2025.

The route will require cable to span 345 km, including 255 km undersea across Bass Strait, and 90 km underground in Gippsland, Victoria. The release said that Prysmian will supply 20 kV single-core cables with XLPE insulation and single-wire armoring, covering both submarine and land sections.

The submarine cables will be produced at Prysmian’s plant in Arco Felice, Italy, and the land cables at either the Prysmian plant in Delft, The Netherlands, or in Gron, France. Installation operations will be delivered by Prysmian’s Leonardo da Vinci. The company will also provide a fully integrated PRY-CAM permanent monitoring system. The completion date is set for 2030.