Caterpillar Marine segment manager for tugs Andres Perez speaks to Riviera Maritime Media about the company’s successful 2023 and its plans for innovation and services in 2024, as the port and towage sectors collaborate to reduce the industry’s environmental footprint.

“In 2023, we experienced strong demand for our products as the industry delivered its highest output in the last eight years in terms of tugs built with high-speed engines,” he says.

“We doubled down on close planning with our customers to ensure we got ahead of any potential constraints. Between demand planning and capacity growth in our factories, we look forward to improving our delivery performance towards our customers.”

In terms of product innovation, Caterpillar delivered the first set of its new Cat 3516E uprated engines to power Robert Allan Ltd-designed RAstar 2800 tugs for Svitzer Australia. The tugs were also equipped with Schottel’s Sydrive-M system. 

The improvement to the renowned 3516E engine delivers 19% more power to 3 MW and a much higher low-speed torque, making it an ideal fit for mechanical hybrid systems on tugs.

“As part of our journey toward fuel flexibility, we teamed-up with Svitzer to test 100% biofuel operations, demonstrating the operation and reliability of the engines while identifying risk areas and maintenance practices to mitigate them,” says Mr Perez.

Caterpillar also made progress on its methanol dual-fuel engine development programme in collaboration with Damen Shipyards and signed a memorandum of understanding with Svitzer to support the tug owner’s climate-related goals by addressing methanol as a fuel in tugs.

Service and support

“We continue strengthening our portfolio of services built on the foundation of our global network of Cat dealers that support tugs in every corner of the world,” says Mr Perez. 

“Evidence of this is our global value agreement (GVA) with SAAM Towage, delivering greater efficiency and cutting downtime across more than 200 engines.

“2023 was an eventful year for us, not only in terms of supporting customers in getting the lowest total cost of ownership in their existing fleets, but also in being part of the equation as the industry transitions to a lower carbon future.”

Caterpillar continues working on methanol dual-fuel engine developments in 2024 and is committed to developing solutions for the future. “We continue to invest in solutions for today, tomorrow, and the future,” says Mr Perez.

“In terms of solutions for today, we are focused on strengthening our Global Cat Dealer network and helping customers achieve the lowest total cost of ownership.”

Its key services include customer value agreements (CVAs) and GVAs to get the most value from their investments. 

“We are also investing in electrification solutions specifically tailored to tugs to play a key role in helping our customer with their energy transition,” says Mr Perez.

“We are working closely with designers, shipyards and owners on pragmatic ways to build energy efficiency and fuel flexibility into the DNA of tugs, with the engineroom being a key piece.”