With his visit to SCHOTTEL in Spay, Germany, from 4 to 6 December, the new Sudanese Transport Minister Kol Manyang Jok underscored the major role played by the company and its propulsion systems in the development of transportation in his country. The visit was occasioned by the signing, in the Ministry of Transport in Khartoum in July 2005, of a contract for the modernization of 16 existing push boats with SCHOTTEL propulsion systems. This conversion and modernization package is worth around 6.3 million euro. During his visit, the minister was impressed by the high level of development and manufacturing competence at SCHOTTEL. The politician was accompanied by the SCHOTTEL representative in the Sudan, Mutasim Gorashi, who had been instrumental in bringing the contract to conclusion. The program also included a reception at the Town Hall of Rhens with Mayor Helmut Eich. During his stay in Germany, Kol Manyang Jok also travelled to Berlin to conduct talks in the Federal Ministry of Transport.
In January 2005, after a protracted civil war, the Sudanese government finally signed a peace agreement with the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) of the southern Sudan. The agreement calls for the rapid reconstruction of infrastructure, and in particular transport routes. Given the poor state of the road and rail networks and the fact that, due to the size of the country, it will be some years before these can play a significant role as transport routes, attention is being focused on developing the waterways.
The Sudan has approx. 5500 km of navigable waterways, with the White Nile being the principal artery for transportation between the northern and southern regions of the country. The peace agreement also heralded the decision to rehabilitate the existing push boats of the River Transport Corporation (RTC); this is to be carried out by SCHOTTEL in the coming months.
Early in 1980, as part of a development aid programme, the Norwegian government had supplied Sudan with 16 push boats. These craft, specially designed for operation in shallow water, were each fitted with two SCHOTTEL Navigators of type SCHOTTEL NAV 300 with Deutz MMW engines of type SBA 8M816 with 368 kW. Throughout their long period in service, the SCHOTTEL propulsion units proved to be extremely robust and reliable. Furthermore, in the intervening years, SCHOTTEL and its representative in the Sudan, Al Mukthar Enterprises, were synonymous with reliable and continuous service. During the project planning phase, SCHOTTEL was able to convince the operator, the semi-state-owned River Transport Corporation (RTC), of the merits of its concept for modernization packages and completely new Navigators. Once again, Deutz AG was able to play a major role and will be providing new BF8M1015 MC engines.
This July, the rehabilitation contract was signed in the Ministry of Transport in Khartoum in the presence of politicians and representatives from the business world.
The rehabilitation programme preserves the original concept of push boats in combination with lighters for the transportation of goods of all kinds. While the political situation in the country has, until now, primarily restricted operation of the push boats to the temperate zone, operation in the southern subtropical region is now also planned. Changing climatic conditions and the harsh operating environment will once again place particular demands on the SCHOTTEL propulsion systems.
The re-motorization will involve a total of 24 complete conversion kits – comprising control hydraulics, control electronics and new couplings – for twelve of the push boats, and eight new SCHOTTEL Navigators of type NAV 330 (368 kW each) for four push boats. Delivery of the SCHOTTEL Navigators and conversion packages is scheduled for this year. Installation work in the Sudan will be carried out jointly by SCHOTTEL service technicians, Deutz technicians and RTC.
With the implementation of this project, SCHOTTEL is setting the standards for all future propulsion concepts in the Sudan. A number of other highly promising projects have already entered the pipeline as a result of this rehabilitation programme. |
