HAVANA, May 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Caterpillar Inc.
(NYSE: CAT) Chairman and CEO Doug
Oberhelman, along with Caterpillar executives and
representatives from RIMCO, the Cat dealer serving Cuba, are traveling to Cuba this week to meet with government
representatives to enhance Caterpillar's already established strong
relationship in this emerging market.
"We believe in the power of engagement, and our goal is to be
both a business and cultural partner in Cuba for many years to come," said Oberhelman.
"For nearly 20 years, Caterpillar has called for an end to the
unilateral embargo. Our visit this week lays important groundwork
for Caterpillar and RIMCO to serve the Cuban market once remaining
trade restrictions are lifted. We are grateful for the courteous
and warm reception we have received."
Oberhelman's visit is the latest step in the company's ongoing
efforts to promote open markets and free trade. This historic visit
represents the most recent Caterpillar efforts to engage with
Cuba both on business and cultural
levels. Earlier this year, RIMCO, the Cat dealer currently
serving Puerto Rico, was selected
as the Cat dealer for Cuba.
We are extremely pleased to return to Cuba once again to continue analyzing the
market," said Richard F. McConnie,
President of RIMCO. "We look forward to offering the Cat solutions
and traditionally outstanding service to help develop Cuba's infrastructure and improve the quality
of life of Cuban people.
While steps remain to achieve fully normalized relations,
including lifting the existing embargo, RIMCO and Caterpillar will
continue preparations to best serve the Cuban marketplace with
construction machines, power systems, turbines and engines.
DONATION TO HEMINGWAY HOUSE ANOTHER HIGHLIGHT OF TRIP
At an event today held at the Cuban home of the late
Ernest Hemingway, Caterpillar
announced that it will add to the previous $500,000 donation made by Caterpillar and the
Caterpillar Foundation to The Finca Vigía Foundation with the
donation of a Cat skid-steer loader. The skid-steer loader will be
used to support the construction of the Taller building, an onsite
conservation laboratory with archival storage facilities located at
the Hemingway House. The Taller will be used to house historic
Hemingway artifacts and documents.
"We are pleased to be able to provide a Cat machine to help in
the construction of the Taller building at the Hemingway House; the
house is part of the cultural heritage shared by the American and
Cuban people," said Oberhelman.
Caterpillar and the Caterpillar Foundation have sought different
avenues for philanthropic opportunity in Cuba since 1998. Previously, Caterpillar had
donated generator sets to support Cuban hospitals. In March,
Caterpillar and the Caterpillar Foundation announced a donation
toward preservation of the Hemingway House.
"We are proud to support The Finca Vigía Foundation's work,"
said Caterpillar Foundation President Michele Sullivan. "By working together with a
number of partners, this project will help build a sustainable and
thriving community, which is good for everyone."
About Caterpillar
For 90 years, Caterpillar Inc. has
been making sustainable progress possible and driving positive
change on every continent. Customers turn to Caterpillar to
help them develop infrastructure, energy and natural resource
assets. With 2015 sales and revenues of $47.011 billion, Caterpillar is the world's
leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel
and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and
diesel-electric locomotives. The company principally operates
through its three product segments - Construction Industries,
Resource Industries and Energy & Transportation - and also
provides financing and related services through its Financial
Products segment. For more information,
visit caterpillar.com. To connect with us on social
media, visit caterpillar.com/social-media.
About RIMCO
RIMCO is the Caterpillar dealer for the
service territory Puerto Rico, the
U.S. Virgin Islands, the
British Virgin Islands,
Barbados, Cuba, and the Eastern Caribbean Islands. It is a
privately-held Puerto Rico company
founded by the McConnie family in 1981. The company has built a
strong reputation in the industry with its superior sales, rental
and product support capabilities. RIMCO sells construction
equipment, power systems and engines to its customers in the
construction, quarry & aggregates, waste, industrial,
commercial and marine segments. RIMCO also has a complete fleet of
equipment and power systems available for rental through its 5 Cat
Rental Stores located in Puerto
Rico and Barbados.
Additional information about the RIMCO organization, its products
and services can be found at www.rimcocat.com.
Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements in this
press release relate to future events and expectations and are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "believe,"
"estimate," "will be," "will," "would," "expect," "anticipate,"
"plan," "project," "intend," "could," "should" or other similar
words or expressions often identify forward-looking statements. All
statements other than statements of historical fact are
forward-looking statements, including, without limitation,
statements regarding our outlook, projections, forecasts or trend
descriptions. These statements do not guarantee future performance,
and we do not undertake to update our forward-looking
statements.
Caterpillar's actual results may differ materially from those
described or implied in our forward-looking statements based on a
number of factors, including, but not limited to: (i) global and
regional economic conditions and economic conditions in the
industries we serve; (ii) government monetary or fiscal policies
and infrastructure spending; (iii) commodity price changes,
component price increases, fluctuations in demand for our products
or significant shortages of component products; (iv) disruptions or
volatility in global financial markets limiting our sources of
liquidity or the liquidity of our customers, dealers and suppliers;
(v) political and economic risks, commercial instability and events
beyond our control in the countries in which we operate; (vi)
failure to maintain our credit ratings and potential resulting
increases to our cost of borrowing and adverse effects on our cost
of funds, liquidity, competitive position and access to capital
markets; (vii) our Financial Products segment's risks associated
with the financial services industry; (viii) changes in interest
rates or market liquidity conditions; (ix) an increase in
delinquencies, repossessions or net losses of Cat Financial's
customers; (x) new regulations or changes in financial services
regulations; (xi) a failure to realize, or a delay in realizing,
all of the anticipated benefits of our acquisitions, joint ventures
or divestitures; (xii) international trade policies and their
impact on demand for our products and our competitive position;
(xiii) our ability to develop, produce and market quality products
that meet our customers' needs; (xiv) the impact of the highly
competitive environment in which we operate on our sales and
pricing; (xv) failure to realize all of the anticipated benefits
from initiatives to increase our productivity, efficiency and cash
flow and to reduce costs; (xvi) additional restructuring costs or a
failure to realize anticipated savings or benefits from past or
future cost reduction actions; (xvii) inventory management
decisions and sourcing practices of our dealers and our OEM
customers; (xviii) compliance with environmental laws and
regulations; (xix) alleged or actual violations of trade or
anti-corruption laws and regulations; (xx) additional tax expense
or exposure; (xxi) currency fluctuations; (xxii) our or Cat
Financial's compliance with financial covenants; (xxiii) increased
pension plan funding obligations; (xxiv) union disputes or other
employee relations issues; (xxv) significant legal proceedings,
claims, lawsuits or government investigations; (xxvi) changes in
accounting standards; (xxvii) failure or breach of IT security;
(xxviii) adverse effects of unexpected events including natural
disasters; and (xxix) other factors described in more detail under
"Item 1A. Risk Factors" in our Form 10-K filed with the SEC on
February 16, 2016, for the year ended
December 31, 2015.
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SOURCE Caterpillar Inc.