Under the global umbrella brand of “Metalflow Alliance,” Germany’s Messe Düsseldorf  will represent seven of its trade shows as part of two co-located Saudi Arabia trade events in May 2025.

A press release said that the Messe will be at two Saudi trade fairs—Metal & Steel Saudi Arabia and Saudi Projects—May 5-7, 2025, the Riyadh International Convention & Exhibition Center. There, the event organizer will present “news and trends” from the following trade fairs: wire, Tube, VALVE WORLD EXPO and GIFA (foundry), METEC (metallurgy), THERMPROCESS (thermo processing)  and NEWCAST (castings). 

Described as the leading trade fairs of the Saudi construction industry, Saudi Projects premiered in Riyadh in 2024 while the Metal & Steel trade fair already has a successful track record. Both trade fairs are organized by AGEX, the Arabian German International Exhibitions, in Riyadh. 

 The Metalflow Alliance will complement the Saudi trade fair duo. The joint trade fair date creates valuable synergies for exhibitors and visitors at all three events.

 Metal & Steel and Saudi Projects are among the most important regional events and supply machines, systems, products and services for the rapidly growing demand in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government is pursuing ambitious infrastructure goals, which are formulated and driven by Vision 2030. Significant investments are being made to transform the economy of Saudi Arabia, which has been described as booming.

 Technologies and products from Metalflow Alliance exhibitors could soon become part of the economic diversification in Saudi Arabia. “The transformation of Saudi Arabia’s economy offers our metal trade fair exhibitors very promising opportunities to enter the Saudi market and, hence, plenty of potential for the coming years,” said Daniel Ryfisch, director of the wire, Tube & Flow Technologies portfolio at Messe Düsseldorf.

South Korea’s LS Cable & System (LS C&S) has accused Taihan Electric Wire (TEW) of technology theft related to the design and layout of its new submarine cable manufacturing equipment.

Per multiple media reports, LS C&S claimed that TEW illicitly obtained the design and layout of LS Cable & System’s specialized equipment used in the production of submarine cables. Those are important as making and moving cables that can span tens of km and weigh thousands of tons reflect the company’s expertise that is a key part of its intellectual property.

The disagreement reached a new level on July 11, when police considered TEW as a suspect for violating the “Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act” and conducted a raid on its headquarters. A statement by LS C&S stated that the “theft of technology by Taihan Electric Wire is a clear criminal act,” and declared that if the allegations are proven true, the company will pursue all legal actions.

At issue was whether information about the floor plan that LS C&S had provided an architectural firm that later worked for TEW was improperly passed along. TEW recently held the official opening of a new submarine cable plant in the Godae district of the Asan National Industrial Complex in Dangjin-si, Chungcheongnam-do, and now plans to build a second such plant there that will be completed in 2026, and operational in 2027.

TEW issued a statement denying the allegations. “(Our) submarine cable factory layout is not a core technology, and there is absolutely no reason to secure a competitor’s layout and drawings for the purpose of technology theft.” It countered that LS S&C has a monopoly in South Korea, and that the country needs to have more competition to protect its market from foreign companies.

NKT has confirmed that it will be a partner for two Scottish power cable projects with SSEN Transmission.

A press release said that last August, NKT had confirmed that it had reserved production and offshore installation capacity for a venture of Scottish transmission system operator (TSO) SSEN Transmission. The company plans to build two high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission links running from the Western Isles to the Scottish mainland, and from Spittal in Caithness to Peterhead.

NKT has now signed a framework agreement with SSEN Transmission, and the parties have agreed to proceed with initial work for the two interconnectors issued under the framework agreement. The project will support the decarbonization of the power system in Great Britain.

The limited notice to proceed with the projects reflects the exceptional collaboration with SSEN Transmission on interconnector projects like the Caithness-Moray HVDC Link and the ongoing Shetland HVDC Link, said Darren Fennell, EVP & Head of HV Solutions Karlskrona in NKT.

The Western Isles and Spittal-Peterhead offshore HVDC transmission links are part of The Pathway to 2030 Holistic Network Design (HND) which is a major upgrade of the electricity transmission network across Great Britain. SSEN Transmission plays a central role in executing on the HND, supporting the journey to meet UK and Scottish Governments 2030 renewable energy and climate change targets. The HND sets out a single, integrated grid design that supports the large-scale delivery of electricity generated from offshore wind.

The Western Isles cable route is approximately 160 km of 525 kV HVDC with a transmission link capacity of 1.8 GW. The Spittal-Peterhead cable route is approximately 220 km of 525 kV HVDC with a transmission link capacity of 2.0 GW. Both projects include on- and off-shore route length, and are scheduled for completion in the first half of 2026.

Southwire announced that it will close its facilities in Santa Fe Springs, Rancho Cucamonga, and Livermore, California as well as reduce some staff as the company continues to realign itself.

A press release said operations will cease at the Livermore and Santa Fe Springs facilities on Oct. 1, 2024, and at the Rancho Cucamonga facility on Nov. 1, 2024. Operations from each of the impacted facilities will be relocated to other existing Southwire locations.

Since 2005, Southwire’s Rancho Cucamonga Customer Service Center (CSC) has served as the company’s primary location for supporting Infrastructure products and Electrical Products and Engineered Solutions (EP&ES) on the west coast. In 2020, Southwire acquired Construction Electrical Products (CEP) and the Livermore facility, further contributing to its EP&ES growth. The company’s Santa Fe Springs facility has primarily supported EP&ES for the west coast since 2019.

“As we work toward improving our customer experience, we must optimize our distribution and manufacturing networks to attain best in class customer service,” said Aaron Asher, Southwire’s senior vice president of Customer Experience. “By leveraging our geographic locations and taking full advantage of our existing network of facilities, we will be positioned to more readily and effectively meet our customers’ needs throughout North America.”

In addition to these facility closures and updates, Southwire has responded to the shifting market conditions by reducing the number of sales and support roles that support the EP&ES business. Impacted persons will be able to apply for open positions within the business.

“The decision to close these facilities, as well as to adjust our staffing in EP&ES, was not made lightly, and it is not a reflection of our team members,” said Peter Lugo, senior vice president of EP&ES. “We would like to thank these team members for their years of service, and we will ensure that those impacted by this decision are treated with dignity and respect throughout the transition.”