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WGLC Celebrates 20 years

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HOUSTON, Oct. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Gulf Energy Information (Gulf) is proud to host the 20th annual Women’s Global Leadership Conference in Energy (WGLC), taking place November 19-20, 2024, at the Marriott Marquis, Houston, Texas.

For 20 years, WGLC has been the largest women’s event in the energy industry. Through insightful dialogue, professional development opportunities, and expansive networking, we foster a community where women and their allies thrive, driving innovation and progress in the energy sector.

“Marking the 20th anniversary of WGLC—something we could not have imagined when we first launched the conference—is testament to the value of camaraderie and collaboration among the growing population of women leaders in the energy industry,” noted Alexandra “Alie” Pruner, founder of the conference, Senior Advisor to investment bank TPH&Co. and board member for a number of energy companies. “Literally thousands of women take part in this gathering each year, a marked increase from the 100 or so folks who attended our first year. Thank you to Gulf Energy Information and its sponsors for making this a global endeavor and continuing to cultivate this vital community in our industry.”

WGLC envisions a future where the energy industry is defined by its diverse leadership, where women from all backgrounds have equal opportunities for advancement and impact. By cultivating a supportive environment that celebrates and amplifies diverse voices, catalyzing the growth of a dynamic and inclusive energy landscape, shaping a sustainable future for generations to come.

John Royall, President and CEO, Gulf Energy Information: “For 15 years, I have had the privilege to work with Gulf’s outstanding events team to produce the most important women’s event in the global oil and gas industry. Over the last 10 years, Melissa Smith has produced the event, and has grown it to a level of unparalleled industry significance. By emphasizing professional development and compelling industry issues, as well as producing excellent networking throughout, WGLC has become a must-attend for women in the industry. This 20th anniversary WGLC will be the best yet, and will provide attendees with outstanding professional development content, as well as the best networking you’ll find in the oil and gas business.”

WGLC’s high-quality speakers, excellent networking opportunities and unique mix of industry topics and personal/professional development topics provide attendees with actionable insights and tactics to enhance their and their teams’ progression. McKinsey’s tenth Women in the Workplace report, launched in September 2024, showed that women continue to lose the most ground in middle management and through programs such as WGLC, businesses can furnish their personnel with key skills to support both recruitment and workplace retention through sponsorship and delegate attendance.

bp returns to WGLC 2024 as the exclusive diamond sponsor. Several bp leaders will speak at WGLC this year, and more than 100 bp employees attended last year’s WGLC in Houston.

Ayana McIntosh-Lee, Senior Vice President Engagement – People & Culture, bp, said “bp is committed to nurturing diverse talent and providing equal opportunities. Through mentorship programs, leadership development and inclusive feedback mechanisms, bp aims to empower employees from all backgrounds to reach their full potential.”

Gulf is thankful to the advisory board, event sponsors and supporting partners who work tirelessly to ensure this event is successful year after year. The full list of sponsors as well as the agenda and speaker list may be viewed online at https://wglconference.com/.

Media Contact:

Rachel McGhie, Conference Director
Gulf Energy Information
Phone: +44 20 3409 2253
384902@email4pr.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wglc-celebrates-20-years-302278069.html

SOURCE Gulf Energy Information

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Anamana Disrupts Micro-Serial Market with AI-Native Platform; 97% Cost Reduction Empowers Global Creators to Challenge “China-Centric” Model

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By empowering a culturally-native creator ecosystem with agentic AI, Anamana bypasses traditional ‘reskinning’ models to deliver high-resonance storytelling at 3% of legacy production costs

SINGAPORE, May 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Anamana, the first integrated AI-native micro-serial ecosystem, today shared demographic data from its inaugural Anamana 100 Creator Incubator, revealing a globally diversified creator base poised to disrupt the non-China global micro-drama industry analysts estimate to reach $5 billion this year.

Two months into the program, the platform has successfully greenlit projects across five continents, signaling a major move away from the dominant mass-production “reskinning” model used by incumbents such as ReelShort and DramaBox.

While the market has historically relied on exporting Chinese narratives through simple translation or Western “reskinning,” Anamana utilizes agentic AI to empower culturally-native storytellers. The Anamana Studio production platform allows individual creators to produce high-fidelity serialized video with up to 97% lower capital and manpower costs than traditional live-action filming, effectively lowering the barrier to entry for independent creators worldwide.

“The current ROI-driven mass production model has hit a creative ceiling,” said Brian Xie, founder of Anamana. “We aren’t just localizing scripts; we are providing the tools for creators around the world to own their narratives and maximize their own economic results. By reducing production costs by over 90%, we are shifting the power from centralized content factories back to the original storyteller.”

Global Creator Footprint & Engagement

Internal statistics from the incubator showcase a massive shift in how global talent is embracing AI-native vertical drama:

The Americas: Represent 40% of both total applications and active production projects.Asia & Europe: Account for a combined 50% of the applicant pool and 53% of current productions.Africa & Oceania: Despite smaller total volumes, projects are nearly evenly split, showcasing high engagement from emerging creative “tribes”, particularly in the number of submissions from Africa.

“Geographic diversity is just the start—cultural authenticity is the goal,” said Kai Pan, Head of Marketing Communications. “With AI-native technology, storytellers are no longer tethered to traditional production hubs like Los Angeles, Kyiv, or Istanbul. We are democratizing the ‘addictive’ vertical format, ensuring the next global hit feels as authentic to its audience as it does to its creator.”

Anamana’s $2 million incubator fund continues to commission creators to foster the first generation of AI-native visual storytellers. Creators interested in the future of micro-serials can apply at anamana.com.

About Anamana

Founded in 2025, Anamana is an integrated AI-native micro-serial platform, production ecosystem, and global creator incubator. By leveraging agentic AI in Anamana Studio, the company enables human storytellers to produce and distribute premium vertical content with unprecedented efficiency. Micro-serials produced are distributed on Anamana’s standalone app and third-party platforms including YouTube and TikTok.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/anamana-disrupts-micro-serial-market-with-ai-native-platform-97-cost-reduction-empowers-global-creators-to-challenge-china-centric-model-302772154.html

SOURCE Anamana

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MCA inaugurates the largest off-grid solar park on the African continent and strengthens its solution for bringing electricity to remote communities

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The infrastructure is part of the Rural Electrification Project, which will benefit more than a million people

MCA has surpassed the previous record set at Cazombo for installed infrastructure, specifically in terms of solar capacity, battery storage and tonnes of CO2 avoided annually

The Luau Photovoltaic Park, which will supply green energy to over 90,000 people, has a production capacity of 31.85 MWp, batteries with a storage capacity of 75.26 MWh and will prevent the emission of 47 tonnes of CO2

GUIMARÃES, Portugal, May 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — In early May, MCA inaugurated Africa’s largest off-grid renewable energy solar park in the village of Luau, Angola. The project was designed to address a challenge faced by many countries across the continent: ensuring a supply of electricity to remote and isolated communities, for whom extending the grid is technically and economically unfeasible.

The Luau Solar Park has a generation capacity of 31.85 MWp and batteries with a storage capacity of 75.26 MWh, enough to supply more than 90,000 people, whilst preventing the emission of 47 tonnes of CO2. This is the country’s second off-grid system with a solar power source and a battery bank for night-time supply, eliminating the need for any fossil fuel. The inauguration of the facility was attended by the President of the Republic of Angola, João Lourenço, and the Minister of Energy and Water (MINEA), João Baptista Borges.

With its commissioning, the Luau Photovoltaic Park has become the largest off-grid park on the African continent, surpassing the record previously set at Cazombo. It should be noted that the Cazombo Solar Photovoltaic Park features infrastructure installed by MCA comprising 25.3 MWp of solar capacity, 59.46 MWh of battery storage, and 40,320 630 Wp photovoltaic modules.

“It is with immense pride that MCA contributes to the country’s energy transition with the delivery of yet another solar park. This is a project that goes far beyond the technical aspect: it represents a commitment to communities that, for decades, have lived without access to energy. The completion of the Cazombo and Luau parks marks just the beginning of a structural and ambitious programme, which will continue to expand in the coming months. We believe that energy transforms lives, creates opportunities and strengthens regions, and it is with this aim that we will continue to work, side by side with the communities, to ensure that electrification reaches where it makes the most difference,” says Manuel Couto Alves, Chairman of MCA.

This infrastructure, budgeted at over €87 million and comprising a total of 54,912 installed solar panels, has created more than 200 local jobs and will enable annual savings of around 18 million litres of fuel. The Luau solar farm is the second to be delivered as part of the Rural Electrification Project covering 60 communes in Angola. 

In a context where electricity plays a fundamental role in promoting local development, the Rural Electrification Project emerges as a structural solution, placing solar energy at the heart of the solution. Off-grid solar farms combine solar generation and storage, enabling clean and reliable energy to be delivered to the most remote communities, with direct benefits for quality of life and economic activity through the democratisation of essential services. The first results are already visible with the completion of the Cazombo plants in 2025, now joined by the Luau plant, in an expansion drive that will intensify until 2027.

The Rural Electrification Project, which envisages the implementation of 46 autonomous mini-grids (powered by solar photovoltaic parks) and an estimated impact on over one million people, has been recognised in the European Union’s Global Gateway strategy, which aims to promote sustainable, inclusive and high-quality connections in the fields of energy, digital technology and infrastructure, contributing to the economic and social development of partner countries. 

In the context of rural electrification, these projects seek to ensure access to clean, reliable and affordable energy for remote communities, strengthening essential services such as healthcare, education and local economic activity, whilst supporting the energy transition and climate action. Based on balanced partnerships and high environmental, social and governance standards, Global Gateway projects in the energy sector aim to generate a lasting impact on local populations, reduce regional inequalities and promote more sustainable and resilient growth. 

Designed and built by the Portuguese MCA Group, the financing for this operation was structured by the British Standard Chartered Bank with the support of the German Export Agency, Euler Hermes, which provided a guarantee of around one billion euros, reinsured by the Portuguese and Korean Export Agencies (Cosec and K Sure). The Angolan state-owned electricity production company (PRODEL Ep) is the project developer.

The Portuguese company has been making a name for itself in the Angolan market by successfully developing turnkey projects aimed at ensuring the provision of basic infrastructure, namely water supply and energy production facilities.

About MCA 
MCA is a Portuguese company founded in 1998 in Guimarães by businessman Manuel Couto Alves and currently has around 2,000 employees in various countries. The company is active in the development, engineering, procurement, construction, and operation of projects in four business verticals: Energy, Urban Development, Infrastructure and Health. MCA began its internationalisation process in 2006 in the Angolan market and is currently present in three geographical clusters including the Iberian Peninsula, Central Europe, and Africa. The company endeavours to create and share long-term value, thereby promoting the sustainable development of the communities in which it operates. https://www.mcagroup.com/en/ 

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2979585/May_MCA_Luau.jpg

SOURCE MCA Group

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ScioSense launches UFC23 ultrasonic flow converter for high-precision, ultra-low-power smart metering

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The new UFC23 sensor combines improved resolution and offset stability with ultra-low standby current, enabling high-end battery-powered water, heat, gas and leak detection meter designs across a wide range of smart metering applications

EINDHOVEN, Netherlands, May 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ScioSense, a leading developer and manufacturer of semiconductor-based environmental and flow sensors, today launched the UFC23 – the 4th generation ultrasonic flow converter for measurement in water, heat and gas meters.

 

 

How can meter manufacturers improve measurement accuracy, extend battery life, and retain control of their preferred system architecture? In modern applications, flow calculation is increasingly handled by a central host microcontroller – requiring a converter that can deliver accurate measurement at very low flow rates and long battery life, two demands that are often difficult to achieve together. The UFC23 is designed for meter manufacturers that want very high measurement precision and extremely low power consumption, while keeping flow calculation on their own central microcontroller.

The UFC23 extends the ScioSense ultrasonic flow portfolio with a pure front-end architecture that omits the on-chip Central Processing Unit (CPU) used in previous flow converters. This gives Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) the flexibility to fit the system architecture now preferred by many meter designers, while also delivering improved analogue front-end performance.

In a typical DN15 water meter setup, the UFC23 provides single-shot standard deviation of 35ps and offset stability of ±7ps with 128-sample averaging and a drift of less than 10ps over the range from 0 to 50°C. This level of precision and stability supports the signal quality needed in high-end water meter designs, including R1000-class measurement requirements. At the same time, the UFC23 is optimized for battery-powered systems, with standby current of typically 0.8µA and an operating current as low as 6.6µA at an 8Hz sample rate.

The UFC23 integrates the functions required to drive ultrasonic transducers, captures received signals, and extracts high-precision time-of-flight data. It supports both 3.3V single-ended drive for water applications and full-bridge drive for gas applications. A programmable gain amplifier with increased gain and bandwidth helps the UFC23 handle weak receive signals, while a programmable ultrasonic burst generator operating up to 4.4MHz and based on an external reference of up to 20MHz allows designers to tune operation to the transducer and application.

The UFC23 also includes features that help improve system-level efficiency and measurement robustness. Designers can monitor the amplitude of up to three received waves and use extended pulse-width measurement to improve first-hit detection. A batch mode allows the sensor to collect up to 12 measurement bundles before waking the host controller, helping to reduce total system power consumption. The UFC23 also supports temperature measurement with external platinum sensors for heat meters and hot-water systems.

Since the UFC23 supports multiple designs, manufacturers can reuse the same sensor across different product families. Typical applications include smart water and heat meters, smart gas meters, water heaters, pump control systems, and smart faucets.

“UFC23 addresses a clear requirement in the metering market for a high-precision, ultra-low-power ultrasonic flow converter that fits modern system architectures. It enables manufacturers to pair ScioSense analogue and timing performance with their chosen host microcontroller and software environment.”
– Norbert Breyer, Director of Marketing and Product Management, ScioSense

The UFC23 operates from a 2.5V to 3.6V supply, supports an operating temperature range of -40°C to 85°C, and is supplied in a QFN32 package. Samples are available now, and evaluation kits are available through key distributors at launch.

For more information, go to https://www.sciosense.com/ufc23/.

About ScioSense – Sensing tomorrow’s world

Headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, ScioSense is a leading expert in and manufacturer of semiconductor-based environmental and flow sensors. Its product portfolio consists of humidity, gas/air quality, temperature, pressure and flow sensors for building automation, home appliances, IoT, wearables, mobile devices, automotive and industrial applications.

At ScioSense, we believe that everyone deserves to understand the world around them, and we are here to help make that happen. Our sensors are designed to be small, smart and easy to use. We are a team of passionate and dedicated professionals committed to making a difference in the world. We believe that our sensors can help create a more informed and sustainable future for everyone.

Information about the company and its products can be found at www.sciosense.com.

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2979202/ScioSense_UFC23.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/sciosense-launches-ufc23-ultrasonic-flow-converter-for-high-precision-ultra-low-power-smart-metering-302771168.html

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