Caterpillar pledges gas technology support to Nigeria
Equipment manufacturing giant, Caterpillar, has pledged to assist the country overcome its power challenges with what it called “Smarter Energy Solutions” driven by gas.
According to a statement, this declaration was made recently at a seminar “Smarter Energy Solutions” hosted by Mantrac Nigeria Limited, sole distributor of Caterpillar products in Nigeria, at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.
It was a business gathering that drew representatives of various, high-profile companies and organizations in the country who were delighted to learn how they could benefit from various gas-powered, environmentally-friendly, energy solutions which help to drive down cost of production.
Divided into various segments, Caterpillar and Mantrac representatives took turns to explain to the business community and the country at large, how everyone could change to gas technologies in the quest to improve power supply in the country. They also took the audience through insightful discussions on the operations of the latest technologies now available in the Nigerian market and how they could be used efficiently and effectively and how the products could be supported long after purchase.
At the same time, representatives of Stanbic IBTC Bank were on hand to explain how the organization could help finance the purchase of the equipment with little stress through the CAT Financial Services, the statement further said.
Cat Territory Manager, Gas, Electric Power Projects, Sohail Anwar, in his comments, according to the statement said: “Caterpillar has been in the gas business and what we are doing at the moment is investing more in developing gas- powered technology because of the ever rising demand for electricity now and in the future. It is green energy; it is environmentally friendly. It is much convenient for the environment so it is much better to invest in green energy. It is basically available; there is abundance of gas in Nigeria, so why not use the natural resource and switch over to a better and efficient gas-powered solution?
He noted that “the essence of the seminar is to explain our company’s position and why we are focusing on gas solution, why electric power solutions and how to select engines and manage them more efficiently.”
On his part, the Managing Director of Mantrac Nig Ltd, Edmund Martin-Lawson, noted that “this is smarter energy solution because we have power solution through gas engines. We are focusing on gas and that is where the government is going.
“So the equipment we are introducing to the country is gas engines that can be used to tap the abundant gas resources available and convert it to power so that soon, Nigeria will stop having power blackout. The engines will take power closer to the communities because as at today, we still have problems with transmission. So the best solution is to bring the engines closer to communities, and produce power.”
He recalled that there was maximum value to be obtained wondering “can anyone imagine going home to see power which is stable and doesn’t blow up their appliances? And now consider that this economy has grown in the past at an average of six per cent per annum without adequate power. “Without adequate power we are the number one economy in Africa, so one can imagine what we can do if there is enough power. Can anyone imagine all the industries that can come up? Can anyone imagine all the people that could be employed? Power is the best thing this country needs. If the gas is used the cost of production will be cheaper than diesel. This will cause manufacturing to become cheaper and cost of production will go down. All of us will have better lifestyles because we have access to power.
“Untreated gas is in abundance in the country. If that is channelled to major cities then it will be available. That eliminates transmission lines. If there is a major gas pipeline on say Victoria Island, Lagos, all we need is a major power plant in the area that will take the gas and change it to power.”
He contended that “if you used gas you will be able to reduce the cost of power. Power need is going into the next level and we should be able to assist as many as are willing to kick start the operation and the ones that are already in operation; we want to give them the support to achieve their objectives.
“As at today, we do diesel but there is no argument that gas is the cheapest source of power. We cannot compare what we spend on gas to what we spend on diesel. Gas is lighter; it is environmentally friendly; it reduces pollution and emission; it is cleaner. That is the closest to green energy. All that makes gas the most veritable source of driving down the cost of production.”
He added that “from this seminar, we at Caterpillar and Mantrac are saying that gas solutions are effective, smarter solutions that can bring down the cost of power. There is a lot of potential in gas and we are helping companies take advantage.”
Mantrac Nigeria Limited (formerly Tractor & Equipment) has represented Caterpillar for about 64 years and remains the sole authorized dealer for Caterpillar products; including the full range of CAT construction equipment; Wheel Loaders, Skid Steer Loaders, Dump Articulated Trucks, Backhoe Loaders, Excavators, Motor Graders, Track-Type Tractors and BCP products.