01 October 2001 (Business Times) - US MULTINATIONAL General ElectricInternational (GE) is expected to deliver 20 high-powered locomotivesbeginning April 2003 under a palm oil counter-trade agreement withMalaysia.Primary Industries Minister Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik said GE willdeliver the diesel electric locomotives to Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd(KTMB) in about 16 months.Malaysia will pay for the purchase, which was sealed two weeks ago, with200,000 tonnes of palm oil and palm oil products valued at US$60 million(US$1 = RM3.80).“The locomotives are the first batch out of 40 locomotives being procuredby KTMB,” Dr Lim told Business Times last Friday. The remaining 20 werebought from Chinese group Dalian Xinze Piston Manufacture Co.“Dalian has yet to deliver its locomotives to KTMB due to complications onhow the China Government will allocate palm oil deliveries to fit with its1.3 million tonnes annual edible oil import quota,” said Dr Lim.Under the counter-trade agreement, Johor-based Pasir Gudang Edible OilsGroup will supply GE 200,000 tonnes of palm oil over a period of 30months. GE will handle the distribution, promotion and sales.GE president for South-East Asia Stuart L. Dean said via e-mail GE isplanning to make an official announcement on details of the deal today atthe Association of South-East Asian Nations Railway Conference in KualaLumpur.The Government has been pushing to use palm oil to pay for part of severalbillion-ringgit deals for locomotives and double-tracking rail contractswith the US, China and India.“Malaysia hopes to see its palm oil make further inroads into the US oilsand fats market. A counter-trade arrangement for the commodity will be inline with such efforts,” Dr Lim said.However, the GE counter-trade deal is separate from a RM12 billiondouble-tracking project which Malaysia is also pursuing, Dr Lim said.The double-tracking project will eventually be part of the Trans-Asiaproject linking Singapore to Kunming in China.Last May, the Government signed a memorandum of understanding withstate-run engineering and construction firm Ircon International Ltd ofIndia to double track and electrify the northern portion of PeninsularMalaysia railway lines.China Railway Engineering Corp is expected to double track the southernportion.Under this counter-trade arrangement, some 8 million tonnes of palm oilare expected to be delivered to both countries over a period of betweenfive years and six years.Malaysia is also currently looking at a counter-trade deal with Russia forthe purchase of fighter jets which is currently in the works.The model of the GE locomotives is not immediately known but sources saidit is widely believed that it is the GE Universal Series ofdiesel-electric locomotives.This model features a wide range of configurations for various gauges,axle loads and horsepower output.“The (American) locomotives can be used to ferry both passengers andcargo, and are probably between 20 per cent and 30 per cent costlier thanthose produced by India, currently used in Malaysia,” said a source.The locomotives are powered by the GE7FDL diesel engine with either directcurrent or alternating current propulsion systems.GE has a locomotive manufacturing plant in Madiun, East Java, Indonesiacalled PT GE Lokomotif Indonesia (PT GE Lokindo).The facility assembles the C20i 2000HP locomotive mainly for the Asianmarket and has delivered 24 units to both the Philippines and Indonesianrailway operators. GE’s locomotives are operated in more than 60countries.GE first started in Malaysia in 1975 with operations in sales and serviceof Power Systems products, state-of-the-art aircraft engines engineeringand electronic commerce base.