MAN Diesel & Turbo to train Power Plant staff for Gabon 

Augsburg, 02/03/2017

MAN Diesel & Turbo has landed a training contract with Gabon’s public development company for power and water, Société du Patrimoine, to train the staff of the Cap Lopez power plant, located close to Port Gentil, Gabon. Since late 2016 37 members of the plant’s future staff undergo an extensive 12 month training program at MAN Diesel & Turbo’s training facility in St.Nazaire, France. Next to the maintenance of engines and turbochargers the program will upgrade the participants’ skills on power plant operation and management as well as on engine performance analysis and safety regulations. In addition MAN will send three experts to Gabon to work on site the plant, who will assist in site management and offer support in maintenance and power plant operation management.

“Comprehensive and qualified training of the people operating a plant is absolutely essential”, says Wayne Jones, Member of the Executive Board for Global Sales and After Sales at MAN Diesel & Turbo. “We are extremely happy to pass on our knowledge and expertise to a valued customer like Société du Patrimoine. Via our global after-sales service brand MAN PrimeServ we offer a vast set of options to support our customers when it comes to plant operations, ranging from full operation and maintenance to the qualification of local staff or remote monitoring services of the plant’s performance.”

The Cap Lopez power plant as well as its sister plant Alénakiri, located in Gabon’s capital Libreville, is equipped with engines by MAN Diesel & Turbo. Both plants have a capacity of 119MW and are equipped with four MAN 18V51/60 Dual Fuel engines, which can operate on either natural gas or Diesel Oil, offering a maximum of fuel flexibility to the plants’ operator. The engines mainly run in gas mode.

The two power plants are central elements of Gabon’s plans to expand its base for power generation. With currently 600MW installed nationwide, Port Gentil and Alenakiri account for approximately 20 percent of Gabon’s overall generation capacity. While Alenakiri is already in operation, the Cap Lopez plant becomes operational and the staff is training while working at the plant.

With an installed capacity of more than 3 Gigagwatts MAN Diesel & Turbo not only has an elaborate footprint on the African continent, but also looks back on more than 60 years of history. With around 300 employees in six African countries, the company’s complete product portfolio is available to its African customers. Customers have access to a network of sales and services locations in South Africa, Nigeria, Senegal, Kenya, Angola and Namibia.