Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd (MHI) has started supplying 3.3-litre, four-cylinder diesel engines to Caterpillar Inc and Caterpillar's UK affiliate, Perkins Engines Co.

Under an agreement with the two firms, MHI would supply 15,000 engines, a Kyodo News International report said.

The engines, used in MHI's own forklifts and bulldozers, would be used in Caterpillar's construction line from now on. The engines would also be marketed through Perkins' distribution network for use in construction machinery, and as industrial engines.