FAST ferry operator CTS-Parkview Holdings has signed a multi-million United States dollar order with Caterpillar of the US to supply generators and engines for its new generation of high-speed, Hong Kong-Macau ferries coming on stream next January.
Caterpillar will ship the electric-power generator sets from its Mossville plant in Illinois and gas turbine engines from its Solar Turbines subsidiary in San Diego to Britain for placement aboard the new ferries.
Terms of the sale were not disclosed. However, Caterpillar Financial Services Corp said it would provide financing for the five ships and the engines and gas turbines with support from the US Export-Import Bank.
The new 44-metre Super Fast TriCat ferries will carry 334 passengers each at speeds in excess of 86 kilometres per hour between the territory and Macau starting in the new year.
About 14 million passengers make the journey between the two ports each year, making it one of the busiest ferry routes in the world.
Hong Kong Parkview and its joint venture partner China Travel Services launched its Turbo Cat service to Macau in February.