Louisiana Cat plans at least 75 technician hires and a multiyear expansion of its facilities and rental locations to meet a surge in shipbuilding, LNG and data center activity. The Reserve-based Caterpillar dealer is perhaps best known for its heavy equipment sales and rentals, but CFO Jason Maurin says its strongest gains are coming from power and power support.
“We’re really seeing growth across every major segment of our business,” Maurin says. “I’d say our most significant growth right now is in our power sales business and in our power product support business, which is parts and service, solely by the sheer size of some of the things we’re seeing in the state—shipbuilding, LNG and certainly data centers.”
Louisiana Cat’s power business sells and services Caterpillar engines and generator systems that power vessels and provide primary or backup power for industrial and commercial facilities.
Power has been part of the business for decades, but its importance to the business has grown substantially over time. In 2011, Louisiana Machinery, which remains the company’s legal name, adopted Louisiana Cat as a trade name to acknowledge the strength of its power systems division.
The company’s marine power business was tied heavily to offshore oil and gas until around 2014, when the offshore sector slowed as major shale plays gained ground. Marine is now seeing a resurgence, though in a different form.
Maurin says a rise in defense contracts and a “shipbuilding renaissance” are driving new demand. Louisiana Cat supplies Caterpillar engines and generator sets to shipyards, which then use them to power the vessels they build.
“We’re seeing a lot of defense contracts come into play and some autonomous vessels and things that are very exciting and somewhat futuristic come back to the state,” Maurin says. “A lot of the shipbuilders that were present in the state are now active again. … Overall, that business—marine in general—makes up a sizable portion of Louisiana Cat as a whole, and we think the growth in that business is just tremendous.”
Louisiana Cat’s power business is also benefiting from Louisiana’s LNG build-out. Maurin says the company tries to participate directly in the majority of LNG terminals in the state.
Data centers are another growth area. Louisiana Cat is already involved in site preparation through machine sales and rentals, and Maurin says the company expects opportunities in power systems and long-term maintenance as those projects come online. Technicians could ultimately be available to some sites “almost 24/7,” he says.
The company is also closely watching Louisiana’s aerospace sector. It already provides power and product support for marine vessels used in rocket recovery and landing operations, and Maurin says the recently announced SpaceX project in Vermilion Parish is large enough that the company is factoring it into budget planning even before the extent of its involvement is clear.
“It’s super exciting,” Maurin says. “I’ll tell you, it’s a little challenging to budget for. It’s such a massive project, and we expect quite a few of our customers to receive bids on that job.”
To keep pace with the increased workload, Louisiana Cat plans to hire at least 75 additional technicians over the next two years and “scale from there,” Maurin says. The company also expects to open additional rental locations and upgrade existing facilities over the next five to 10 years, though the company has not set a final dollar amount for that capital spending.
