Bells Creek energy manufacturer Eniquest secures $47.4m defence contract to supply ADF generators

A Bells Creek generator manufacturer is expected to more than double its annual revenue after securing a $47.4m deal to supply diesel power units to the Australian Defence Force. Find out how the company did it.

A Bells Creek field generator maker has won a $47.4m federal government contract to supply the Australian Defence Force with 1000 diesel energy units over the next four years.

Eniquest will manufacture 1350 portable gensets designed for the Australian Army's overseas bases and outposts. 

The company successfully secured the tender against competition from about 19 other manufacturers including larger national and international companies.

It will employ an additional 25 to 30 full time roles at its manufacturing warehouse which it is expanding later in 2022 to upscale production.

The business is also expected to more than double its annual revenue over the next few years.

Eniquest founder Don Pulver said the defence contract laid a strong foundation to grow his business and bid for future defence related projects.  

"When the ADF moves, whether its headquarters or an operational facility they need power and require equipment they can take with them and hook up to their facilities,” Mr Pulver said.

Eniquest founder and general manager Don Pulver

"This is the first of a bigger picture because there’s medical system projects as well which hopefully we’ll be involved in.

"It's the basis of their requirement and they’ve got specialised projects that will need this product. The supply will be ongoing as well as maintenance for the power units.”

The lucrative deal will provide in excess of $12m of subcontract work to other Queensland parts manufacturers and $5m for Eniquest's warehouse expansion. 

The Sunshine Coast company also signed a $200k "contract for support" with options for further defence buys which is expected to increase the main contract's value to more than $50m. 

One of Eniquest hi-tech genset models at the company’s Bells Creek warehouse

It comes after Eniquest pivoted its business towards national and overseas defence-related work amid the pandemic and recorded a 30 per cent increase in annual revenue last year and has projected a similar rise for 2022.

Among the other major defence projects the company has in the works include a $3-4m contract with the ADF’s Bushmaster vehicles, $1m to supply diesel genset units to the New Zealand Army, and deals with other countries including Singapore and Jamaica.

Defence sales account for about 60 per cent of the Bells Creek business’s earnings which is roughly double the amount from 2020.

Eniquest's Bells Creek warehouse

Mr Pulver has been working in the industrial energy space for about 50 years and founded Eniquest in 2004 - a year after moving from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast.

The company began by designing diesel gensets for small ADF projects and solar batteries for boats and other recreational vehicles, making between $200,000 to $400,000 in revenue per annum with three staff in its early years.

Along with major defence projects, Eniquest also produces diesel gensets for large commercial corporations including Boeing for its satellite launching infrastructure.

Mr Pulver said diesel generators still have a future despite the rapid global transition to clean energy generation, but is looking at integrating renewable sources into his business.

“The diesel generator I foresee will still be around for another 50 years but it will be a hybrid product, it will rely a lot on storage but bear in mind these things have to be rapidly deployed, they’ve got to be able to provide power out of the smallest possible package,” Mr Pulver said.

“We’re looking at better ways to do things, hydrogen is obviously in our minds at the moment and how that can be adapted but power storage and continuous power for big demands is what we’re all about.”

Originally published as Bells Creek energy manufacturer Eniquest secures $47.4m defence contract to supply ADF generators