Equipment firm opens regional hub

A Kenyan commercial equipment distributor has pumped more than Sh500 million into new facilities set to host East African operations.

Pan African Equipment Group (PEG) has opened the doors of the new offices as it eyes growth opportunities.

PEG chairman Charles Field-Marsham said the new facility reflects their commitment to continue investing in Kenya and the region.

“Although there are current market challenges proving headwinds against many of the sectors, if managed correctly Kenya has the potential to continue supporting our business,” he said yesterday during the opening of the offices on Mombasa Road, Nairobi.

Mr Field-Marsham further said the challenges were not unique to the host country alone pointing out that other countries such as Ghana and Tanzania were also struggling. 

PEG Group Chief Executive Scott McCaw said the firm sees opportunities in the country’s nascent extractive industry as well power and construction sectors.

“With Kenya and East Africa focusing on increasing its power supply and its extractive market, we believe it will certainly drive the mid to long-term objectives of our business,” he said.

PEG started 22 years ago as a territory distributor of Komatsu, Wirtgen and Agco machinery in support of the mining, construction, agriculture and power sectors. It has since grown to serve more than eight markets in Africa.

General Manager Greg Jackson said the firm has full distributorship functions in six countries.

“Founded in 1997, the growth has seen the company employ up to 400 persons in Africa, where more than 100 of them are in Kenya,” he said.

The manager further said the company has invested heavily in staff and customer capacity development to ensure the sustainability of the business.