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Nexans, the French cable maker, announced that its new cable plant in Qatar starts commercial production. Nexans's joint venture (JV), the Qatar International Cable Company (QICC) is located in Mesaieed Industrial City, which is 40 km from Doha. The new facility employs more than 100 staff, and it is expected that it will generate annual revenues of more than US$100 million by 2011. Nexans said that the plant will engage in the production of LV, MV and low-end HV power cables for energy infrastructure and building projects. It will also produce special cables for the oil and gas industry. Potential target markets include Qatar, the GCC and Yemen. The power cable plant occupies 19,000 sq.m. on an overall plot of 70,000 sq.m., close to a harbour that is reportedly developing as the largest in the Middle East. QICC was established in 2008, as a JV between Nexans (30%), Special Projects Company and Al Neama Industrial Co.

Because of slowing housing construction and the consequent decline in demand for gas appliances and water taps, the demand for brass bars in Japan is falling. Demand is also being affected by the decrease in car industry activity. As a result, brass bar makers in Eastern Japan are planning to reduce production output for the fourth quarter by 20-25% on a year-to-year basis. August production in Japan was ''as low as 16,362 tonnes'', according to the Japan Copper & Brass Association. Monthly order receipt volume for the last three months of 2008 is expected to average just 15,000 tonnes.

Kitz Metal Works, a brass bar maker and subsidiary of the Kitz group, announced plans to add a continuous casting line at its Chino plant in Japan. The US$2.6M development will add a further 18,000t-19,200t to the company's annual billet production capacity. Construction work is set to begin this month and the plant is expected to be commissioned by the end of the year. The company expects that the lower production cost of the new casting line will allow for the investment cost to be recovered within five years.

Hitachi Cable Ltd. announced that it will cease production at its Tsuchiura plant by March 2012, effectively ending its domestic copper tube business. The facility produces copper tubes for air conditioners and in FY2010 it contributed to a sales volume of 20,000t; a sales value of ¥17.76B or 4.2% of the company's total revenue. The withdrawal from the business is attributed to difficulty maintaining profitability after air conditioning manufacturers shifted operations to foreign markets. Hitachi will keep a 50-50 JV with Furukawa Electric in Shanghai and its 36% share of a Thailand based copper tube manufacturer.

It is believed that a cash crunch is reducing orders in the Chinese power sector, which accounts for 60% of the country's copper demand. Analysts predicted strong copper demand in H1 as the country was eager to repair the damages to power networks caused by the heavy snow in the early part of the year. However, repairs have so far mainly been made to aluminium and fibre-optic cables. Cash flow problems at copper rod and wire plants have occurred following the government's tight credit policy and high copper prices. Some 30% of copper wirerod production capacity is being reported idle. The cash shortages have also delayed copper buying from active copper fabricators, further dampening consumption of the metal. China, a net importer of copper, exported 31,000 tonnes of refined copper in April, up 227% year-on-year, with the possibility that the country might have been re-exporting the metal since late February. China's General Administration of Customs reported that 14,000 tonnes were exported to South Korea, six times that from the same period last year. This perhaps confirms that traders were re-exporting copper it has imported to LME-approved warehouses to take advantage of the discount between Shanghai and LME copper prices.

Neans focuses on "priority markets"

In the past few days world leading cablemaker Nexans has announced one acquisition, one new joint venture and one asset disposal. On the 30th May, Nexans acquired Intercond a leading Italian manufacturer of special cables for industrial equipment and subsea applications. The company had sales of €90m and employs 150. "This [€90m] acquisition fits totally in the Group's strategy by increasing the proportion of its business in high value-added special cables", said Gerard Hauser, Chairman and CEO of Nexans. On the 2nd June, Nexans released a press report confirming that it has formed a joint venture to create a wire and cable plant in Qatar, the country's first manufacturing facility. Qatar International Cable Company (QICC) is owned 29% by Nexans with the balance being owned by Special Projects Company and Al Neama Industrial Co. The new plant in the industrial city of Mesaleed, 40km from Doha, and will employ 210 people. By the end of 2009 it will begin manufacturing low and medium voltage cables for buildings and energy infrastructure as well as special cables for the oil and gas industry. This JV will generate sales of $150m per year by 2010 at current copper prices. Finally, Nexans confirmed that it has completed the pre-announced sale of its copper telecom cable plant at Santander in Spain to the British company B3 Cable Solutions for €17m. These three actions continue to refocus the group's strategy on priority market segments.

According to a study from Clarion University, Pennsylvania, USA each step in the current US process of building and running a nuclear plant, from mining the uranium ores to disposing of the wastes, contributes to greenhouse gas emissions. Indeed, the article states that for nuclear power to be a feasible alternative energy source the entire process would need to be more efficient. This study gives a view on nuclear power which includes long standing ideals. The paper seems to offer an intermediate review on issues around the subject of nuclear, in the wider energy debate.

Related article: http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/35971/113/ Biofuels could actually increase greenhouse gases by a recent study.