President & CEO Roe-hyun Myung of LS Cable & System (LS C&S) and Chairman Mohamed Ali Abdellah of Egypt`s cable installer M.A.N International Contracting pose with other officials after they signed a deal to set up a cable manufacturing joint venture in Cairo on Nov. 20.

LS Cable & System (LS C&S) has joined forces with an Egyptian company to explore African markets.
The move is part of the Korean cable maker’s strategy to gain a toehold in Africa, which has significant entry barriers, including high tariffs and greater logistics costs through local production.

LS C&S signed a contract with Egypt’s cable installer M.A.N International Contracting to set up a cable manufacturing joint venture. It is the first time LS C&S has established a production joint-venture in Africa.

The deal aims to dedicate a plant on a lot covering 15,000 sq. meters in an industrial park near Cairo by 2020 to produce overhead wires for electricity transmission. The plant will have a production capacity of overhead wires stretching 2,500 km in length annually.

Overhead wires are installed over steel towers between power generation plants and stations and are cheaper to install than underground cables. Demand for overhead wires for power transmission is on the rise in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

LS C&S, seizing Egypt as an African market center, plans to aggressively tap the market. Egypt is a key country to the cable maker as the African country takes a 15 percent share in the African cable market.
Korean companies find it hard to secure export competitiveness due to exorbitant tariffs and logistics costs.

LS C&S plans to secure price competitiveness through local production with a focus on the production of premium products local companies cannot produce.

A view of extremely fire-proof cable, produced by LS C&S. ( Photos: LS C&S)

On Oct. 1, LS Cable & System announced that it was the first company in the cable industry to be a supplier of government-certified disaster safety products.

Certified products can withstand a fire for a long time and emit less smoke and toxic gases if subject to a fire.

In case of fire, it is important that emergency lights, fire alarms, sprinklers, ventilation devices and evacuation facilities operate for a long time.

LS C&S’s fireproof cables have proven to function properly for 180 minutes at 950°C, which is higher than general cables in the market (750°C, 90 min.). Thus, the “golden time” becomes twice as long.

Furthermore, there needs to be less smoke and toxic gas emission so that people can evacuate as quickly as possible and to reduce casualties.

LS C&S’s non-toxic cables use eco-friendly materials that emit less smoke and increase visibility by twice while reducing the emission of carbon monoxide and hydrogen chloride by more than 90%.

Despite these numerous benefits, apartment buildings are still not using non-toxic cables, and the fireproof standard for cables in the Korean Fire Services Act is much lower than other countries.

President & CEO Myung Roe-hyun said, “The public sector has to take the lead in introducing safety products, for the safety of our citizens.” He also stressed, “The amendment of related regulations such as the Fire Services Act is required, as well as the efforts of companies for product development.”

Flame retardant tube products, which you can simply overlay on installed cables to prevent them from burning is also receiving attention.

The company anticipates that this product will be spread among distribution boards that are frequently the ignition point for apartments, factories, traditional markets, etc.

Disaster safety product certification was introduced in 2018 by the Ministry of Public Administration and Safety to verify the reliability of products that are closely related to public safety.

A total of 11 products have been selected so far, including three from LS C&S.