Seven “Made in the UAE” fuel-efficient cars designed by engineering students from leading universities took part in a Shell-hosted historic test run at the prestigious Yas Marina South Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The cars are designed and built by students from five UAE-based universities who will participate in the Shell Eco-marathon competition taking place in Manila, 6-9 February 2014.

Teams from Higher Colleges of Technology’s Al Ruwais Colleges, Abu Dhabi Men’s College, Dubai Men’s College, American University in Dubai and American University in Sharjah presented their cars, designed to travel the longest distance on the least amount of energy, reflecting the mission of the Shell eco-marathon race.

All teams successfully completed the test run in the presence of senior Shell officials lead by Andrew Vaughan, Vice President and Country Chairman Abu Dhabi and including Mike Evans, Formula 1 Fuels Project Leader, and Colin Chin, Technical Director Shell Eco-marathon Asia, who presented team members of each participating school to senior UAE officials and the media.

“I am delighted to introduce such a talented group of young engineers who represent a beacon of progress for the country and region’s ongoing quest for sustainable energy and to witness the fruit of their hard work, with seven ‘Made in the UAE’ cars getting ready to take part in the global Shell Eco-marathon next year in Manila,” said Vaughan Vice President and Country Chairman Abu Dhabi.

In recognition of the students’ efforts Vaughan said, “The participation of five UAE universities in this year’s Eco-marathon initiative, a five-fold increase on last year, is a tribute to the commitment of the leadership to knowledge and progress. These universities are enabling the country’s future leaders to not only join but shape the global dialogue on energy efficiency and smarter mobility. We look forward to hosting these teams in Manila in 2014 and to more and more teams joining the Eco-marathon in the near future.”

Shell technical teams work with the student teams supporting all the stages of vehicle development from inception to construction.

“Getting students to not only think about fuel efficient vehicles, but to design, build, test and refine them is what will bring about positive sustainable change for the future. At Shell we see it as our responsibility to help support educators and create initiatives where students can put these solutions on the road,” said Evans Formula 1 Fuels Project Leader.

In countries across the Middle East, the number of vehicles on the road is increasing annually and finding solutions today that increase vehicle energy efficiency is critical for future generations.

In recognition that cleaner energy and energy conservation are critical issues to the UAE’s sustainable growth and development plans, every team aspired to conceptualise a fuel-efficient car that will have a positive impact on the transportation industry of tomorrow.

“The Shell Eco-marathon has been an amazing experience and we are so pleased to share the learning with the teams from the other UAE universities. To be able to test our cars on Abu Dhabi’s Formula 1 track and to travel the road driven on by the racing world’s legends is a dream come true. We look forward to representing the UAE with our cars at the Shell Eco-marathon 2014 Manila race,” said Abdulaziz Khadem, team leader, Al Ruwais College.

Shell Eco-marathon is one of the world’s most innovative and challenging global student competitions held annually in Asia, the Americas, and Europe. In February 2014, Shell Eco-marathon Asia will move from the iconic F1 track of Sepang Racing Circuit in Kuala Lumpur to Manila’s city streets. The event is expected to be a blowout where the seven UAE teams will be competing along side over 140 teams from countries across Asia and the Middle East. All teams will be striving to drive the advancement of smarter mobility, fuel efficiency, and environmental awareness – doing more with less - making energy conservation and sustainable mobility a way of life.

 

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