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reporter from NBD: Cha Daokun; editor at NBD: Xu Fei. On March 21, the same day as the chemical plant explosion in Xiangshui, Jiangsu, an accident also occurred at the “world’s tallest submarine cable cross-linking tower” project in Yangzhou, Jiangsu. According to official statements from Yangzhou, at around 13:46 on that day, the scaffolding used for the painting work on the exterior wall of the main tower of the project carried out by AVIC Baosheng Marine Engineering Cable Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Baosheng Marine Cables) collapsed. The accident resulted in 6 deaths, while the other 5 people involved were in stable condition. It is worth noting that the company involved, Baosheng Marine Cables, has two shareholders that are listed companies: Changfei Fiber Optic (601869, SH) and Baosheng Co., Ltd. (600973, SH). Furthermore, the contractor for this project, China State Construction Second Engineering Bureau, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of China State Construction (601668, SH). This means that the incident involved three listed companies. In response to this, a reporter from the Daily Economic News called the relevant department in Yangzhou; the person in charge stated that the official announcements should be taken as the authoritative source, and no further information could be provided. On the evening of March 24, the three aforementioned listed companies issued announcements to explain the situation. “An accident occurred in the “World’s Tallest Sea Cable Cross-Linked Tower” project. According to a report in the Yangzhou Daily in August 2018, the total investment in this project was 5 billion yuan; it was the largest manufacturing project under construction in Yangzhou. Once operational, the project was expected to generate an annual output value of 6 billion yuan. Feng Huaqiang, general manager of Baosheng Marine Cables, said at the time that the completed cross-linked tower would have 28 floors in total, with 26 floors above ground reaching a height of 188 meters, and 2 floors underground; 20 of those floors have already been built. However, this project, touted as the \"world’s tallest submarine cable cross-linking tower,\" experienced a safety accident during construction. On the afternoon of March 21, following the accident, the Yangzhou Municipal Party Committee and Government immediately activated the emergency response plan, mobilizing relevant departments such as those in charge of emergency management, housing and construction, fire protection, and health to carry out rescue operations and make every effort to save the injured. Preliminary verification shows that as of 20:30 on that day, 11 people were at risk in the accident. On the evening of March 21 and the morning of March 22, 6 of the people in danger died despite efforts to save them. Currently, the conditions of the other 5 people involved in the incident are stable. The Management Committee of Yangzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone stated that between March 22nd and 23rd, after repeated inspections of the accident site, no other people in danger were found. Regarding the cause of the accident, a reporter from the Daily Economic News called the relevant authorities in Yangzhou, who replied that everything should be based on the information released publicly, and they were unable to answer other questions. Three listed companies are involved. According to investigations by reporters from the Daily Economic News, the Baosheng Marine Cable project, where the safety accident occurred, involves three listed companies: Baosheng Co., Ltd., Yangtze Optical Fibre and Fiber Optic Co., Ltd., and China State Construction Engineering Corporation. On the evening of March 24, China State Construction Engineering Corporation issued a statement saying that it had taken note of articles published in certain media outlets, which reported on an accident that occurred at the Yangzhou AVIC Baosheng Marine Engineering Cable project, a project undertaken by the company’s subsidiary, China State Construction Second Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd. China State Construction said that the accident is under investigation at present, and the responsible party has not yet been identified. The listed company stated that, as verified by the project team, the exterior wall scaffolding was provided by Shenzhen Qianhai Techen Technology Co., Ltd., which has the necessary professional contracting qualifications; the exact cause of the accident is still under investigation. It is expected that this incident will not have a significant impact on the company’s operations and performance. Meanwhile, Baosheng Co., Ltd. also issued a statement stating that Baosheng Marine Cables is a subsidiary in which the company holds a 70% stake; the total contract value for the tower construction project with the general contractor amounts to 148 million yuan. This incident will have no impact on the company’s overall project development, nor will it affect the company’s operational performance or current profits and losses. On the evening of March 24, a reporter from Daily Economic News called Baosheng Co., Ltd., and the company replied, “The accident is still under investigation, and we are awaiting the results of the investigation.” ” GF Fiber Optic also announced on the evening of the 24th that it holds a 30% stake in Baosheng Marine Cables, which is an associated company of the firm. The company’s subscribed capital contribution to Baosheng Marine Cables amounts to 300 million yuan, accounting for 2.33% of the company’s total audited assets in its most recent period. This incident will not have a significant negative impact on the company’s operations. (The cover image is from Shetu.com) Daily Economic News