ABB to Build New Transmission Cable Factory in the U.S.

May 19, 2010
Facility will cater to power infrastructure projects and integration of renewable energies Houston, Texas, May 18, 2010 - ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, announced today that it will construct a new factory in the United ...

Facility will cater to power infrastructure projects and integration of renewable energies

Houston, Texas, May 18, 2010 - ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, announced today that it will construct a new factory in the United States to manufacture high-voltage land cables for power transmission.

The new plant will manufacture land cables for use in both AC and DC applications. ABB will invest approximately $90 million in the new manufacturing facility, which is expected to employ around 100 people. The selection process for the site of the factory is well under way.

"Cables play a key role in the efficiency and reliability of long-distance power transmission," said Peter Leupp, head of ABB's Power Systems division.

"The need to upgrade the existing transmission infrastructure in the United States, to provide grid interconnections and integrate more renewable power into the grid is driving demand for cables."

ABB has been manufacturing polymeric insulated cables since the early 1970s and is a leading supplier of efficient, high-quality cable systems for a range of voltage levels. The company's offering includes XLPE (cross-linked polyethylene) insulated cables for use in high-voltage applications, up to 500 kV (kilovolt), that provide opportunities for energy-efficient power

transmission. ABB has delivered more than 7,200 km of XLPE cables for voltage levels above 100 kV around the world.

ABB has pioneered power transmission technologies since the 1950s, when it delivered the world's first commercial HVDC (high-voltage direct current) power link. The company developed HVDC Light in the 1990s, delivered the world's longest underwater power link in 2008 and is currently connecting the world's most remote offshore wind farm.

This announcement was made live by ABB CEO Joe Hogan at the ABB Automation & Power World conference and exhibition, ABB's premier customer event held this year in Houston.

About ABB

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 117,000 people. The company's North American operations, headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, employ about 12,000 people in 20 manufacturing and other major facilities.

For help with any technical terms in this release, please go to:

www.abb.com/glossary

Contact:

ABB Media Relations:

Wolfram Eberhardt,Thomas Schmidt

(Zurich, Switzerland)

Phone: +41 43 317 6568

[email protected]

About the Author

Amy Fischbach | Field Editor

Amy Fischbach is the field editor for the Electric Utility Operations section of Transmission & Distribution World. She worked for Prism Business Media (now Penton) for eight years, most recently as the managing editor of Club Industry's Fitness Business Pro magazine. She is now working as a freelance writer and editor for B2B magazines. Amy earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism from Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. She serves as the national vice president of the American Society of Business Publication Editors. She can be reached at [email protected].

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