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Altaf H Bahmany is Director (Business Development) at Emission Particle Solution Sweden AB, a Swedish company which manufactures fuel additives which are claimed to increase fuel efficiency, decrease air pollution and maintenance cost of engines. He was recently in Kathmandu to launch the EuroAd Diesel pill in Nepal. In an interview with New Business Age, he explained about the product and its expected market in Nepal. Excerpts:What brings you to Nepal?
We had been hearing about Nepal for a long time. It’s a great country. A lot of things have changed and are better now in Nepal. It is now easy for anything to penetrate the market. EuroAd is a nice and unique product which is going to help the present and future generations. It was launched in 2006 in Sweden and has been doing very good there since then. Now, slowly we are diversifying our business to many countries in the Middle East and Asia. It is because of the population. Also, the Middle East is a major oil producing region. Our product – wherever it is used – will help reduce pollution.
Could you tell us something about your product, EuroAd? How does it work?
It’s a very unique product. There are no products like this available in the market. We haven’t seen any competition to our product till today. Some chemical-based products are there but we are totally vegetable-based. Our product is a plant extract. A number of similar products have come and gone but we remain in the market. Nepal is a tourist country; a lot of tourists come here. But pollution is a big concern for tourists everywhere. You can reduce air pollution by using our product. That’s why we thought Nepal could be a market for our product.
Is the purpose of your visit is to formalize the relationship with Energy Plus Trading Pvt Ltd?
Yes, because they are the people we have short-listed for the sales and distribution of our product. They are the authorized dealer for our product. We found Energy Plus suitable for the job.
You said EuroAd was launched in 2006. Why did it take eight years to bring it to Nepal?
It’s an innovative product. People have concerns about any innovation – will it work or will it damage my engine? etc. It took a long time to establish this product even in Europe. Once it was approved in Europe, we decided to take it to the Middle East. Today, we are covering almost all Middle East countries.
In how many countries is this product being used presently?
Our product is being used in more than 25 countries including India, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Baharain, Kuwait, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Uruguay, Ghana etc. We have a very small presence in China and are trying to enter Italy.
What kind of market do you see for your product in Nepal?
We hope Nepal to be a good market. It has a population of about 30 million. Anybody who is using diesel engines – cars, buses, trucks, generators, water boilers, power plants etc – can use our product.
You are saying that your product increases fuel efficiency of engines, decreases air pollution and capacity of engine?
Our product definitely enhances fuel efficiency and decreases air pollution but it does not increase engine capacity. But it will give more power to the engine. It cleanses diesel. So the engine performs better. It creases fuel efficiency by at least eight to 10 per cent; some people have claimed even up to 18 per cent. It also lowers the emission of Carbon Dioxide and Carbon Monoxide from engines, thus helping reduce air pollution.
How does it work?
It is a very simple formula. All one has to do is to drop the pill in the diesel tank; one pill is enough for 80 litres. Sometimes, we urge the people to use more than one pill in order to see fast result. Nowadays people are impatient; they want fast results.
There are other similar products in the market that also claim to increase fuel efficiency and enhance engine performance. But it is said that these products are not very successful in the Nepali market. How is your product going to fare any better?
What we say to the Nepali consumers is: use it, feel the difference and then come to us. We do not impose our products on anyone. We have tested products by others as well. But they did not come close to our satisfaction. And none of them are plant-based.
When was this product launched in India?
In 2012. In India, we are going from one state to another. I the next five years, we hope to be present in all states of India. Presently, our market size in India is about USD 800,000 to 1.2 million and is growing at two per cent per annum. We are also talking to some fuel companies. If the talks are successful, the fuel companies will themselves mix EuroAd in the fuel they supply, like in Sweden.
