Sep 2016 Financial News

CNG maxis arrive next month

Sep 19, 2016

ANSA Motors has announced plans to begin importing CNG ready 24-seater maxi taxis from next month. 

This development comes seven weeks after the company sold its first CNG-powered 21-seat bus to the T&T Association for the Hearing Impaired and is part of a thrust to take the industry lead the provision of alternative fuelled vehicles, said company director and CNG team lead Rishi Basdeo.

In March 2015, Classic Motors, a division of ANSA Motors, introduced the Honda City bi-fuel sedan, followed 17 months later, on August 26, by the introduction of the Freightliner range of heavy commercial CNG trucks by Diamond Motors, another company in the group.

“We are not finished. We have coming into our portfolio—that will be introduced in October—CNG mini buses that will seat 15 persons and OEM (original equipment manufacturer) CNG panel vans,” Basdeo told the T&T Guardian.

“So, we have taken the entire portfolio from passenger (mini and large buses) to light and heavy commercial. We will have a range of players in the market. It’s excellent, because we also understand what the government wants to achieve with this initiative and we wholly support the initiative. Because of that we have invested perhaps more than any other local car dealer in this initiative.” 

Basdeo said maxi taxis were the largest independent segment of diesel users in the country and the group already had a 90 per cent plus market share in that category. 

He said: “We have just completed our first Fuso Rosa conversion from diesel to diesel-CNG that comes with a full manufacturers’ warranty from Fuso, who is honouring the CNG conversion, so we will be passing that warranty onto our customers.”

He added that ANSA Motors had been in discussions with the NGC/CNG Company on how that state-owned enterprise could support maxi taxi operators with an incentive for conversion. Earlier this year, NGC CNG invited companies in the heavy duty and extra heavy duty sector to respond to an expression of interest (EOI) for funding of their conversion to CNG. Nine companies responded to the EOI, requesting that more than 300 vehicles of their vehicles be converted. 

Basdeo described the engineering and fuel evolution as both exciting and nerve racking. He said since Government launched the CNG initiative almost four years ago, the company has developed a focused strategy for its involvement in the industry. While NGC had lease operators supplying units, ANSA Motors was the supplier to those lease operators. 

“We were first to market with diesel CNG technology, which was not available in the market prior to four years ago. CNG systems since the 1970s have always focused on the gasoline side of it. That is a much simpler technology than the diesel CNG technology. Gasoline CNG is called bi-fuel. It can work independently of each other. 

“With diesel, it’s using two fuels at the same time, so it’s dual fuel and you get exceptional mileage out of it. With our CNG diesel systems, you get an over 60 per cent substitution rate in CNG and that is ideal for what is needed.

“Traditional diesel systems that would have tried to enter the market previously would not have given you more than 18 to 20 per cent conversion. So, we have had an improvement both on the electronic side and on the hardware side. What makes it even more exciting is that government has continued on its CNG initiative and they have expanded their scope, so they are not only focused on retro fitting or local installation, but are also very focused on OEM units. 

“ANSA Motors has taken the lead, even with OEM units. We have been the first to market with the OEM Honda City the first bi-fuel. Even now, we are the only OEM bi-fuel unit on the market and now we are moving forward with the Freightliner brand: the first OEM heavy commercial unit on the market.”

At present, the dealership had 15 CNG trained technicians, in addition to its own CNG engineer, who is actively assisting government through the NGC CNG Company and the National Energy Skills Centre.

“So it’s not just about training our guys and keeping expertise within. We have bought into the project and the wider government aspect of it, and we are supporting the government’s initiative in that regard, through technology transfer. Outside of the training, we have also invested in our workshop. It has cost us upward of US$60,000. There is also a heavy investment in terms of CNG systems both diesel and gasoline CNG systems,” Basdeo said. 

Source:
Sean Nero
Trinidad Guardian
Saturday September 17, 2016

http://www.guardian.co.tt/business/2016-09-17/cng-maxis-arrive-next-month