DEVENS, Mass., Aug. 29, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AMSC (NASDAQ:AMSC), a global energy solutions provider serving wind and power grid industry leaders, and Nexans, a worldwide expert in the cable industry, today announced a partnership to market and sell AMSC's Resilient Electric Grid (REG) system, as well as other high performance superconductor power cables, in the U.S. and Canada. As part of this partnership, AMSC and Nexans will collaborate to jointly develop and deliver these projects with existing and potential electric utility customers in the U.S. and Canada.

"We are pleased to be expanding our relationship with Nexans. Nexans is a valued partner and leading provider of utility power cables, that is committed to building advanced power transmission and distribution networks utilizing AMSC's HTS superconductor technology," said Daniel P. McGahn, AMSC President and CEO. "We believe Nexans' expertise in state-of-the-art power transmission and distribution cable systems, along with the combined strengths and assets of both companies, will support commercial projects for REG systems and high temperature superconductor (HTS) power cables. We see particular value being offered to our electric utility customers to help address the commercial complexities of a REG system order.

"We are proud to partner with AMSC and to offer superconductor solutions for complex urban power transmission and distribution challenges in the North American utilities market," said Dr. Dirk Steinbrink, Senior Executive Vice President High Voltage & Underwater Cable Business Group at Nexans. "We believe targeting this market opportunity with a collaborative approach will be incrementally productive to both companies."  

AMSC's REG system is an innovative approach to the power distribution system that increases reliability and capacity of the electric grid. By enabling the use of transmission and distribution assets in a way that is not feasible with traditional technologies, the REG system enables significant increases in grid reliability and increases load-serving capacity, while limiting the need for additional grid infrastructure, which mitigates any environmental impact. The key component to the REG system is AMSC's breakthrough Amperium^® wire that combines with other sub-system design elements to increase the reliability, redundancy, and resiliency of urban power grids, greatly reducing the impact of equipment failure due to aging, cyber threats, physical disasters, or weather-related events. 

AMSC's Amperium superconductor wire is able to conduct approximately 200 times the electrical current of copper wire of similar dimensions. This capability also allows for the delivery of a high performance power cable system that can address transmission and distribution challenges facing utilities worldwide.

About AMSC (NASDAQ:AMSC)

AMSC generates the ideas, technologies and solutions that meet the world's demand for smarter, cleaner … better energy™. Through its Windtec™ Solutions, AMSC provides wind turbine electronic controls and systems, designs and engineering services that reduce the cost of wind energy. Through its Gridtec™ Solutions, AMSC provides the engineering planning services and advanced grid systems that optimize network reliability, efficiency, and performance. The Company's solutions are now powering gigawatts of renewable energy globally and are enhancing the performance and reliability of power networks in more than a dozen countries. Founded in 1987, AMSC is headquartered near Boston, Massachusetts with operations in Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America. For more information, please visit www.amsc.com.

About Nexans (NEX:FP)

Nexans brings energy to life through an extensive range of cables and cabling solutions that deliver increased performance for our customers worldwide. Nexans' teams are committed to a partnership approach that supports customers in four main business areas: Power transmission and distribution (submarine and land), Energy resources (Oil & Gas, Mining and Renewables), Transportation (Road, Rail, Air, Sea) and Building (Commercial, Residential and Data Centers). Nexans' strategy is founded on continuous innovation in products, solutions and services, employee development, customer training and the introduction of safe, low environmental impact industrial processes. In 2013, Nexans became the first cable player to create a Foundation to introduce sustained initiatives for access to energy for disadvantaged communities worldwide.

Nexans is an active member of Europacable, the European Association of Wire& Cable Manufacturers, and a signatory of the Europacable Industry Charter. The Charter expresses its members' commitment to the principles and objectives of developing ethical, sustainable, and high quality cables. We have an industrial presence in 40 countries and commercial activities worldwide, employing close to 26,000 people and generating sales in 2015 of 6.2 billion euros. Nexans is listed on NYSE Euronext Paris, compartment A. For more information, please consult: www.nexans.com.

AMSC, Amperium, Windtec, Gridtec, and Smarter, Cleaner … Better Energy are trademarks or registered trademarks of American Superconductor Corporation. All other brand names, product names, trademarks, or service marks belong to their respective holders.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). Any statements in this release about our expectation to collaborate with Nexans to jointly sell REG systems and HTS cables in the U.S. and Canada; our belief that our and Nexans' strengths will support commercial orders for REG systems and HTS cables; and other statements containing the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "will" and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements represent management's current expectations and are inherently uncertain. There are a number of important factors that could materially impact the value of our common stock or cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. These important factors include, but are not limited to: We and Nexans may not reach one or more binding agreements to sell REG systems or HTS cables to one or more utilities, and even if we do reach one or more binding agreements, we may not successfully market and sell REG systems or HTS cables; We have a history of operating losses and negative operating cash flows, which may continue in the future and require us additional financing in the future; Our operating results may fluctuate significantly from quarter to quarter and may fall below expectations in any particular fiscal quarter; Our financial condition may have an adverse effect on our customer and supplier relationships; Our success is dependent upon attracting and retaining qualified personnel and our inability to do so could significantly damage our business and prospects; We rely upon third-party suppliers for the components and sub-assemblies of many of our Wind and Grid products, making us vulnerable to supply shortages and price fluctuations; Many of our revenue opportunities are dependent upon subcontractors and other business collaborators; We may not realize all of the sales expected from our backlog of orders and contracts; Our success depends upon the commercial use of HTS products, which is currently limited, and a widespread commercial market for our products may not develop; We have operations in and depend on sales in emerging markets, including India and China, and global conditions could negatively affect our operating results or limit our ability to expand our operations outside of these countries; We face risks related to our intellectual property; We face risks related to our legal proceedings; and the important factors discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in Part 1. Item 1A of our Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016, and our other reports filed with the SEC. These important factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by forward-looking statements made herein and presented elsewhere by management from time to time. Any such forward-looking statements represent management's estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

AMSC Contact:
Brion D. Tanous
CleanTech IR, Inc. 
Phone: 424-634-8592
Email: Brion.Tanous@amsc.com

Nexans Contacts:
Angéline Afanoukoe 
Nexans Press relations
Phone + 33 1 73 23 84 12
Angeline.afanoukoe@nexans.com

Michel Gédéon 
Nexans Investor Relations
Phone +33 (0)1 73 23 85 31
Michel.gedeon@nexans.com