Wärtsilä expands activities in Manaus, Brazil

21 December 2006 - Wärtsilä will invest R$ 3.5 million (EUR 1.2 million) in its Services workshop in Manaus, Brazil. The investment covers the construction of a new workshop and the purchase of new equipment to meet regional demand.

“We want to expand our offering in the northern part of the country and to do this we are investing in machinery, equipment and human resources. In Manaus and the Amazon the roads of the region are its rivers, through which approximately 30,000 small, medium and large ships sail every year. We provide service for many of these vessels,” says Marcos Macedo, Wärtsilä Services Manager in Manaus.

“We also carry out service on almost 600 MW of Wärtsilä power plants in the region as well as providing industrial maintenance for companies in the Industrial District. As our client base grows, we want to be even closer to our customers, offering faster and more qualified services,” Macedo says.

The expansion will triple the existing facilities, giving a total of 3,500 square metres for the existing and new services. “We will further expand our automation and instrumentation services” says Tomas Hakala, President of Wärtsilä in Brazil. “During 2006 we also received full Operations & Maintenance contracts for three power plants in Manaus. Our new workshop will be centrally responsible for all the operational functions, as well as component maintenance and the administration of the power plants,” he continues.

The existing workshop already provides tooling, repairs and maintenance for propulsion and automation and electrical equipment for vessels, platforms and power plants. Wärtsilä in Brazil also provides on-site maintenance services, thanks to the use of portable equipment and a mobile technical team.

Wärtsilä in Manaus has approximately 100 employees, including the operators of three power plants, and 35 specialized professionals, engineers, technicians and employees working in the existing Services workshop. In addition to the physical expansion of the Services workshop, Wärtsilä also plans to recruit more technical personnel for different positions in the next few months to meet the increase in business volume.

Wärtsilä has an installed base of over 100 ships and vessels in Brazil in oil tankers, tugboats and pushers, and also platforms and naval installations. Wärtsilä also has more than 850 MW power plants installed or on order in Brazil.



Wärtsilä in brief:

Wärtsilä enhances the business of its customers by providing them with complete lifecycle power solutions. When creating better and environmentally compatible technologies, Wärtsilä focuses on the marine and energy markets with products and solutions as well as services. Through innovative products and services, Wärtsilä sets out to be the most valued business partner of all its customers. This is achieved by the dedication of more than 13,000 professionals manning 130 Wärtsilä locations in close to 70 countries around the world.

This release in Portuguese: www.wartsila.com/Wartsila/global/docs/en/press/pdf/PR_por_manaus_211206.pdf

Contact Information

Marit Holmlund-Sund

Public Relations Manager, Ship Power

Wärtsilä Corporation

Contact via E-mail