Fushi Copperweld, Inc. the leading global manufacturer of bimetallic wire used in a variety of telecommunication, utility, automotive and other electrical applications, today announced that it will host two Wire and Cable Conferences at its Dalian facility the week of July 21, 2008. Both events are organized by leading Chinese wire and cable associations and will focus on existing and new applications of bimetallic wires in the telecommunications and utilities industries.

The first event, held July 22-23 and sponsored by the Shanghai Electrical Cable Research Institute (SECRI) and the China’s Electrotechnical Society’s Electrical Cable and Wire Committee, will bring together major players within the cable industry to discuss current and potential applications of bimetallic products, CCA and CCS in the power cable and utility industries. Anticipated participants include representatives from SECRI, major cable manufacturers, and municipal power companies, including those serving Beijing, Guangdong and Liaoning.

The second event, held July 25 and organized by the 23rd Institute, will provide a forum for reports on the telecommunications and coaxial cable industries and discussions between industry professionals.

Mr. Li Fu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Fushi Copperweld commented, “We are pleased to be actively involved in the organization and participation of these leading industry events. We look forward to discussing the global trends in the bimetallic industry and educating participants about our growing bimetallic products and applications.”

French state-owned nuclear firm Areva has won a 70 million euro ($111.4 million) contract for work on the subsea interconnection between France and Britain, it said on Tuesday. UK power network operator National Grid and French power grid operator RTE awarded Areva a contract to enhance the reliability and reinforce the availability of the IFA 2000 cable, launched in 1986.

“Areva will replace the existing high-voltage converter equipment and the control and cooling system,” the company said in a statement.

Frost & Sullivan presented General Cable with the 2008 North American Frost & Sullivan Award for Growth Excellence in the Energy Cables market. The Award recognizes General Cable for serving a diverse set of customers, with wide ranging applications, on a truly global scale.

The company has achieved consistent growth in the world interconnects space – a feat that is as much a measure of customer loyalty and retention as it is about expanding its customer base.

With nearly 14,000 associates and 46 manufacturing plants in 23 countries, the $6 billion company is one of the largest wire and cable manufacturers in the world and holds significant share in both established and emerging markets. It serves a wide range of applications spanning international and domestic requirements, including energy exploration and extraction, power generation, and the transmission and distribution markets.

The company’s broad global reach, combined with an extensive product portfolio and effective distribution strategies, has catapulted it into the top league of the world wire and cable market.

General Cable invests substantially in R&D to satisfy growing energy demands, introducing new and improved products for the global oil, gas, petrochemical, and mining industries, as well as for alternative energy sources such as solar, hydro, biomass generation, and wind farms.

“The company capitalizes on its technology assets to maximize global synergies, by effectively deploying material science and product design across geographies, fully leveraging all the advantages that come from being a worldwide organization,” says Frost & Sullivan Industry Manager Raman Monga. “In supplying the global energy markets, General Cable plays a key role in providing higher-value products, cultivating stronger end-customer relationships, and developing product and material design capabilities that differentiate the company from its competitors.”

“General Cable is pleased to receive this Award from Frost & Sullivan in recognition of our market leadership in our core energy product category,” commented Pat Gorman, General Cable’s Vice President of Energy Sales, U.S. “We are well-positioned globally to support the surging demand for energy.”

The company offers an extensive line of products that serves the transmission and distribution grid. Its high- and extra-high-voltage overhead and underground conductors and cables meet the demands of a growing energy infrastructure, while the medium-voltage and low-voltage products serve the primary and secondary distribution grid consisting of overhead and underground cables.

“General Cable is equipped to provide turnkey solutions with compatible terminals and prefabricated joints, which are of great value to the customer,” observes Monga. “The General Cable energy teams around the world recorded greater than 50 percent of the company’s revenues in 2007 from energy infrastructure cables, substantiating their success in this highly competitive and growing market.”

In efforts to maintain or improve its market position, General Cable also concluded several strategic mergers and acquisitions to expand its market reach. It has acquired many specialized companies through this business tactic and its capability to identify a suitable prospect has been instrumental in making the company more competitive globally.

“One of the most notable strategic acquisitions over the past year was that of Phelps Dodge International Corporation, which has a well established presence in the Latin American, Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia-Pacific markets,” notes Monga. “This was an important milestone for the company, as it substantially increases its presence in these emerging markets and augments its market share globally.”

Each year Frost & Sullivan presents this Award to the company that has demonstrated excellence in implementing and sustaining growth within shipments, revenues, and profitability.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research in order to identify best practices in the industry.

About General Cable

General Cable (generalcable.com) is a global leader in the development, design, manufacture, marketing and distribution of copper, aluminum and fiber optic wire and cable products for the energy, industrial, and communications markets. Contact: Pat Gorman, P: 845.368.8005, E: pgorman[.]generalcable.com.

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, partners with clients to accelerate their growth. The company’s TEAM Research, Growth Consulting and Growth Team™ Membership empower clients to create a growth-focused culture that generates, evaluates and implements effective growth strategies. Frost & Sullivan employs over 45 years of experience in partnering with Global 1000 companies, emerging businesses and the investment community from more than 30 offices on six continents.

LS Corp. and its subsidiary LS Cable Ltd. announced today that the relevant antitrust waiting periods have expired or clearances have been obtained in the United States, Germany and Spain with respect to their subsidiary’s pending $45.00 per share cash tender offer for all outstanding shares of Superior Essex Inc. As a result, the only remaining antitrust condition of the tender offer is clearance by the relevant authorities in China. The review period in China is scheduled to expire at 5:30 AM (New York time) on Thursday, July 31, 2008.

The tender offer is scheduled to expire at 5:00 PM (New York time) on Wednesday, July 30, 2008, unless extended. Subject to the timely receipt of the clearance in China and the satisfaction of all other conditions to the tender offer, including the minimum tender condition, LS Corp. expects that all Superior Essex shares that have been validly tendered and not withdrawn prior to the expiration of the tender offer will be accepted for payment prior to 9:00 AM (New York time) on Thursday, July 31, 2008.

The terms and conditions of the tender offer are set forth in the Offer to Purchase dated July 1, 2008 and the related Letter of Transmittal.

About LS Cable

LS Cable, a newly established and wholly owned subsidiary of LS Corp., is a leading wire and cable manufacturer with headquarters located in Korea. LS Cable has 3,300 employees and more than 15 manufacturing sites located in 10 countries, with operations on three continents. LS Cable provides a wide range of power and communications cable solutions for the energy infrastructure, construction, automotive, railway, telecommunication and electronic industries. With high, medium and low voltage power cables, LS Cable meets its customers’ demands for cable and cable systems for power transmission and distribution in energy infrastructure and related industries.

LS Cable also serves the needs of customers for optical communication, which is the platform of broadband networks. LS Cable offers various optical cables and optical fibers of single and multi mode for LAN, access, long distance and metropolitan networks. LS Cable supplies coaxial cables, UTP cables and FTTH (Fiber to The Home) solutions for rapid and massive data transmission. For more information about LS Cable, please visit www.lscable.com.

LS Corp. (formerly know as LS Cable Ltd.) was founded in Korea in 1962 and it became a listed company on the Stock Market Division of Korea Exchange (formerly known as Korea Stock Exchange) in June 1977. As previously announced, on July 2, 2008, LS Corp. effected an internal corporate structure change, whereby LS Corp. changed its name from “LS Cable Ltd.” to “LS Corp.” and transferred the assets and liabilities of its wire and cable business into a newly established wholly owned subsidiary named “LS Cable Ltd.”

OFS today announced it will raise the price of its optical fiber cable products immediately by up to 10 percent depending on their exposure to rising materials, energy, and transportation costs.

OFS continues to experience dramatic price increases of raw materials used in the manufacture of fiber cable such as polymer resins, aramid yarn and steel.

“Materials and energy costs have increased over 15 percent year over year, while transportation costs are up 7 to 10 percent,” said Bill Kloss, Executive Vice President of Marketing and Sales, North America and CALA, at OFS. “These price increases are required to partially offset these unprecedented costs that we have absorbed over the last year.”

In addition to implementing energy conservation programs, lean manufacturing and process improvements, OFS continues to review alternative sourcing of raw materials and transportation to minimize the impact of these increases.

About OFS

OFS is a world-leading designer, manufacturer and provider of optical fiber, optical fiber cable, FTTX, optical connectivity and specialty photonics products. Our manufacturing and research divisions work together to provide innovative products and solutions that traverse many different applications as they link people and machines worldwide. Between continents, between cities, around neighborhoods, and into homes and businesses of digital consumers we provide the right optical fiber, optical cable and components for efficient, cost-effective transmission.

OFS’ corporate lineage dates back to 1876 and included technology powerhouses such as AT&T and Lucent Technologies Today, OFS is owned by Furukawa Electric, a multi-billion dollar global leader in optical communications.

Headquartered in Norcross (near Atlanta), Georgia, U.S., OFS is a global provider with facilities in Avon, Connecticut; Carrollton, Georgia; Somerset, New Jersey; and Sturbridge, Massachusetts, as well as in Denmark, Germany and Russia.

A new undersea fiber-optic cable being laid between Cuba and Venezuela will help provide high-speed Internet access to Cuban citizens by 2010. Earlier this week, Wikileaks published documents that were signed in 2006 by officials in Cuba and Venezuela describing plans for the new undersea cable that will connect the two countries.

The United States economic embargo against the island nation has forced the communist country to rely on slow and expensive satellite links for Internet connectivity, according to the Wikileaks article. Even though it would cost less and be more efficient to lay a new cable between Cuba and the U.S., which are only 120 kilometers apart, Cuba is working with Venezuela to lay a 1,500-kilometer cable to get high-speed Internet connectivity.

The proposed cable, which is being deployed by CVG Telecom (Corporacion Venezolana de Guyana) and ETC (Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba), will also provide high-speed Internet access to Jamaica, Haiti, and Trinidad.

According to the Wikileaks article, the new undersea cable is being built as a strategic partnership between Cuba and Venezuela to encourage an interchange between the two governments; foster science, cultural and social development; and increase economic relationships among Cuba, its South American neighbors, and the rest of the world.

Cuba has traditionally kept a tight lid on Internet access in the country. In 2003, the government cracked down on ordinary Cuban citizens, who were accessing the Internet over the government’s painfully slow phone network.

But recently since Raul Castro has taken power from his brother Fidel Castro, the government has loosened many restrictions on average citizens. In March, a ban prohibiting ordinary citizens from owning cell phones was lifted. And in May, the Associated Press reported that Cubans are now allowed to buy desktop PCs.

GCI an Alaskan telecoms network operator in the Alaskan long-distance market, has announced today that engineers have begun to lay a new undersea fiber-optic cable in parts of the largest and northern most state. The cable will connect Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Angoon and Sitka – cities in the southeast part of the state, below the capital of Juneau – into the main backbone network and provide greater capacity and routing resilience for the Alaskan network.

Operations onshore in Ketchikan start on July 18 and the cable will be laid down from the Inside Passage from Ketchikan to Juneau, from there it will head south to connect to Angoon and west to connect to Sitka.

The system is expected to be completed by November and will cost about $33 million. It will provide fiber-based connectivity to communities that have until now been reliant on microwave and satellite connections. The additional route will also benefit Juneau residents by relieving the load on existing systems and increasing the ability of the network to self-heal.

Alaska is the largest state in the United States in land area at 570,380 square miles, more than twice as large as Texas, the next largest state.

BT has reportedly tested a revolutionary non-invasive copper cable replacement technology developed by Kabel-X, writes The Times. The technology strips copper cable and replaces it with fibre optic cable without having to dig up roads. The technology could help accelerate BT’s super-fast broadband plans. Simon MacDonald, founding partner of Kabel-X in the UK, said it had conducted a successful trial project with BT in Southampton. He said the technology is already being deployed in Austria and Germany and is being tested in the US.

Friday, Jul 18, 2008
SBM Offshore N.V. is pleased to announce the following contract awards:

1. BP Angola FPSO

A call off frame contract has been obtained from BP Angola in support of a development programme offshore Angola. The initial contract call off has been signed for early engineering and fabrication works to support enhanced local fabrication capability in the region.

Subject to Project Sanction, the call off for the first FPSO will be issued the 2nd half of 2009. Subsequent FPSOs may be called off subject to future projects sanction. Further contract details will follow in due course.

2. Total Angola PAZFLOR Offloading System

A consortium of SBM Offshore and APL (part of BW Offshore) has been awarded a Letter of Award by Total E&P Angola for the Engineering, Procurement, Supply, Construction and Installation (EPSCI) of the Oil Loading System on the PAZFLOR project.

The SBM Offshore scope of work consists of:

- Engineering, Procurement and Supply of the (2) Oil Offloading Lines, to be based on the TrellineTM, a large diameter reinforced bonded rubber hose, which will be suspended between the FPSO and the deep water CALM buoy;

- Offshore installation of the complete Oil Loading System.

3. Cranes and Jacking Systems for Windmill Installation Vessels

An order has been received from Resolution Shipping Ltd (Cyprus), a subsidiary of Vroon Group, for the supply of two 1,000 ton cranes and two jacking systems, with a total jacking capacity of 22,500 tons each, for two wind turbine installation jack-up vessels (SBM Offshore design).

The combined portfolio value of the orders mentioned under 2 and 3 above represent approximately 230 million US Dollars.

4. Financial Agenda

5. Corporate Profile

The Dutch public company SBM Offshore N.V. is the holding company of a group of international, marine technology orientated companies. Its business is to serve on a global basis the offshore oil and gas industry by supplying engineered products, vessels and systems, and offshore oil and gas production services.

The product line comprises:

• Offshore import/export terminals for crude oil, refined products, LPG and LNG, mostly based on the single point mooring principle, Floating Production and/or Storage and Offloading systems (FSOs and FPSOs) and other floating production facilities based on ship hulls, semisubmersibles and Tension Leg Platforms (TLPs);

• Offshore oil and gas production services through the leasing of integrated production and storage facilities owned and operated by the Company;

• Design, construction and supply of semi-submersible drilling platforms;

• Special designs and engineering services and delivery of specific hardware components for dynamically positioned drillships, semi-submersible drilling platforms, jack-up drilling platforms, jack-up platforms for civil construction, large capacity offshore cranes, elevating and lifting systems, crane vessels and other specialised work vessels;

• Offshore construction and installation contracting services.

]]>