Clean Line Energy Partners LLC (Clean Line) announced an agreement between its subsidiary Plains and Eastern Clean Line LLC and Sediver (a business unit of Seves Group) to source a key component for the Plains & Eastern Clean Line project from a new manufacturing facility and testing laboratory that Sediver will build and operate in West Memphis, Arkansas per the request of Clean Line. The agreement designates Sediver as the preferred supplier for the glass insulators for the Plains & Eastern Clean Line, an approximately 700-mile direct current transmission line that will deliver low-cost, clean energy from the Oklahoma Panhandle region to customers in Arkansas, Tennessee, and other states in the Mid-South and Southeast. Clean Line selected Sediver because their toughened glass insulator technology ensures the best reliability for direct current (DC) transmission line projects and because Sediver committed to manufacturing the insulators at their new state-of-the-art facility in Arkansas. Clean Line President Michael Skelly said, “We are thrilled that, at our request, Sediver is opening a manufacturing plant in Arkansas and will be supplying the insulators for our Plains & Eastern Clean Line. This agreement furthers our commitment to purchase as many of the needed materials and services as possible from local companies in the Plains & Eastern Clean Line project area.” He added, “This project will propel Arkansas forward by bringing new manufacturing and construction jobs and a low-cost renewable energy to the Natural State for years to come.” Sediver is a world leader in overhead transmission and distribution line insulator technology and has been serving leading utility customers throughout the world for the last 70 years. Sediver has a long history in the United States, formerly manufacturing glass insulators and subsequently polymer insulators. Sediver’s new West Memphis “Made in the USA” glass insulator manufacturing plant will be well-positioned to serve utilities across the United States. Sediver’s decision to return operations to the United States and open a manufacturing plant in Arkansas at this time was bolstered by the opportunities brought forth by the Plains & Eastern Clean Line project. Sediver has maintained significant market share in the United States with a sustained double-digit growth over the last five years, the company selected West Memphis for its logistical advantage and Arkansas’ qualified work force. “We are excited to be back in the United States and to be able to contribute to cutting edge renewable energy infrastructure projects like the Plains & Eastern Clean Line,” said Rene Tabouret, CEO of Sediver. He added, “We selected West Memphis for our new assembly plant and testing laboratory to serve the Plains & Eastern Clean Line, along with other American utilities, and the global transmission and distribution industry. The new facility will create over 70 jobs for Arkansans when we begin operations in late 2016.” The Plains & Eastern Clean Line will facilitate an approximately half-billion dollar investment in Arkansas and will roughly double the amount of low-cost clean energy the Natural State currently acquires. The Plains & Eastern delivery converter station in central Arkansas would have the capacity to provide enough low-cost clean energy to supply over 160,000 Arkansas homes annually. The project will create hundreds of jobs in construction and manufacturing, and benefit counties and local communities across the state by paying over $5 million per year in ad valorem taxes and other revenues. City of West Memphis Mayor William Johnson said “We couldn’t be more pleased that Sediver has chosen West Memphis as a base for this important work in the U.S. We appreciate the high-wage jobs this project will bring to our city.” He continued, “And as the utility industry ages, replacing existing insulators with new, highly efficient ones is a large and growing market and I am excited that West Memphis will be at the center of the effort. My experience as a former general manager for our local utility gives me an even greater understanding of the importance of Sediver’s product to the nation’s power grid.” In addition to signing the agreement with Sediver, Clean Line has an agreement in place with General Cable to manufacture the conductor for the Plains & Eastern Clean Line at General Cable’s Malvern, Arkansas plant. Gregory J. Lampert, president and CEO of General Cable North America, said, “Our facility and our associates in Malvern take pride in knowing that the product they make will, in part, stay right in their state of Arkansas for this Clean Line project—improving the infrastructure of their state and strengthening its economy.”
Clean Line’s commitment to purchase all of the insulators and conductor for the Plains & Eastern Clean Line transmission project from Arkansas manufacturers represents more than $160 million in purchases for products made directly in Arkansas by Arkansans. The Plains & Eastern Clean Line is currently under development and based on current estimates, is expected to begin construction as early as 2016. For more information about the Plains & Eastern Clean Line, please visit www.plainsandeasterncleanline.com.
About Clean Line Energy Partners
Clean Line’s mission is to connect abundant, renewable energy resources to areas that have a high demand for clean, reliable energy. Clean Line is developing a series of high-voltage direct current transmission projects to move renewable energy to market. For more information please visit www.CleanLineEnergy.com.
About Seves
Seves Group is the world's leading manufacturer of high voltage electrical insulators and glass blocks. In Oct 2014, Seves was acquired by funds advised by Triton, which portfolio of companies combines sales of around $15 billion and more than 58,500 employees. Seves Group employs 2,600 people around the world and generates revenues of more than $370M The group is organized in 3 independent business units: Sediver specialized in overhead line insulation technology, PPC global manufacturer of porcelain insulators for substations as well as transmission lines and Seves glass block, leader of glass blocks for architectural and interior design applications. For more information, please visit: www.seves.com.
About Sediver
Sediver, headquartered in Paris is the global leader in overhead line insulation technology for Transmission & Distribution lines. With 900 employees in factories, laboratories and sales offices in North and South America, Europe and China, Sediver is serving leading utility customers across all continents. Sediver’s mission is to always be at the forefront of technology developments thanks to extensive R&D programs and thus offer its clients innovative solutions and best in class services. For more information, please visit: www.sediver.com.