Celebrators present at the hand-over ceremony include Evo Morales, Bolivian President, Shen Zhiliang ,Chinese Ambassador to Bolivia, Saavedra, Bolivian Defense Minister, Sanchez, Minister of Public Works, Armando Pacheco Gutierre, Commander of Bolivian Armed Forces, Commanders of Land, Sea and Air Forces with other senior generals, Ms. Adayar, Director of Customs Administration, Zhou Jian, Military Attaché, and Liu Rutao, Commercial Counselor, from the Chinese Embassy, representatives from China North Industries Corp. and all service engineers of Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group (XCMG) based in Bolivia.
In the afternoon of March 2nd, 2012, a grand handover ceremony for road construction machinery and equipment to the Bolivian Army Engineer Battalion was held in El Alto. On the ceremonial site, hundreds of vehicles and machineries were arranged in neat rows waiting for inspection. The Bolivian military guard of honor and engineer battalion lined up for inspection with colored banners in hand. Bolivian President Evo Morales, Chinese Ambassador to Bolivia Shen Zhiliang, Bolivian Defense Minister Saavedra, Minister of Public Works Sanchez, Commander of the Armed Forces of Bolivia Armando Pacheco Gutierre, Commanders of Land, Sea and Air Forces and other senior generals, Director of Customs Administration Ms. Adayar, Chinese Embassy Military Attaché Zhou Jian, Commercial Counsellor Liu Rutao, representatives from China North Industries Corp. and all service engineers from XCMG based in Bolivia attended took part in the ceremony.
The Bolivian Engineer Battalion Road Construction Equipment Project is the first one of such a nature since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Bolivia, as well as the first transaction in XCMG’s exporting history dedicated to a country on a plateau. Bolivia bought 374 units of various road construction machines and equipment, with Chinese loans, including 197 XCMG units, ranging from truck cranes, rollers, loaders, crawler cranes, concrete pumps, motor graders, excavators, to backhoe loaders, etc. The project, worth over US$20 million, is a major milestone in XCMG's journey to South Americ market, following the first XCMG-Venezuela engineering machinery deal.
At the ceremony, President Morales and Ambassador Shen conducted the “Fire Cupping Baptism" ritual, following the traditional Indian custom, to the excavators to be put into use soon. After the "Baptism", President Morales went into the cockpit of a XCMG XE230 excavator and experienced the superior performance of XCMG product in person. After a test run, President Morales put up his thumb and announced: "XCMG, NO.1!”
Highly devoted to the XCMG-Bolivia Project, Mr. Wang Min, Chairman and Party Secretary of XCMG, has offered personal guidance and instructions on the proceding of the project on numerous occasions. With XCMG leadership's dedication and strong support and corporation-wide efforts of XCMG Import & Export Co., Ltd., the XCMG production, technology and service departments customized the products to cater to Bolivia's special construction environment and working conditions. As the result, a whole range of uniquely designed plateau-use products were developed. On top of that, XCMG Service & Spare Part Department helped the Bolivian Army establish a spare parts depot and a service center in the shortest possible time, which all helped to ensure smooth delivery of XCMG products to the plateau country. In order to improve XCMG products’ after-sale service in Bolivia, XCMG also organized a specially-dedicated technical service team comprising of a dozen of members to set up a permanent maintenance and spare part service center in Bolivia. Such a move does not only set the users’ minds free from technological concerns about XCMG products, but has also boosted XCMG’s pace of internationalization.
Mr. Liu Jiansen, Assistant President of XCMG and General Manager of XCMG Import and Export Co., Ltd. stated that the XCMG-Bolivia Project was a fruitful cooperation between China and Bolivia in the economic and trade fields. Leveraging excellent product quality, brand name and after-sale service & spare part system, XCMG has become the only Chinese supplier of construction machinery sets to Bolivia. The smooth delivery of the Project would not only ensure the Bolivian people’s efforts in building a better life, but also lay down a solid foundation for XCMG to further develop the Bolivian as well as South Americ market. It is one important step for China’s construction machinery industry go onto the global arena. He believed the XCMG products delivered to Bolivia would make great contribution to the engineering construction in Bolivia by virtue of their superior performance.
President Morales inspects XCMG delivered products
President Morales sits in cockpit of XCMG XE230 Excavator and experiences XCMG product’s superior performance in person.
President Morales and Ambassador Shen conduct "Fire Cupping Baptism", an Indian tradition, to launch the excavators.
XCMG products, Bolivian military guard of honor and engineer battalion line-up in waiting for inspection.
