The Abu Dhabi Solar Challenge, ADSC, the first ever solar car competition to take place in the UAE, was announced on Tuesday.

 

Navigating the entire country, the 1,200km ADSC will start and finish in Abu Dhabi and take place from Jan. 16-19, 2015. The race will coincide with Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week and end at the opening ceremony of the World Future Energy Summit.

 

The challenge is sponsored by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, ADNOC, and hosted by Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company, Masdar.

 

Sanctioned by the International Solarcar Federation [ISF] and jointly organized by Global EEE and Professional Sports Group, the challenge will attract over 20 of the top university solar car teams from Australia, Europe, America and Asia. The teams will travel from across the world to compete in the cross-country event similar to the World Solar Challenge in Australia and the American Solar Challenge in the USA.

 

The UAE has been a pioneer in the region through its various renewable energy investments both domestically and internationally. Most notably, Shams 1 the 100MW concentrated solar power plant developed by Masdar, is the region’s largest project.

 

Designed and built by university students, the competing solar cars are complex machines that bring together the latest technologies from the renewable energy, aerospace and automotive industries.

 

The Petroleum Institute has brought together engineering and electrical engineering students to create a team for the ADSC, and will be the first ever from the Emirates’ to compete in an event of this kind.

 

Event Director and ISF Executive Board Member for MENA, Dr Nabih Bedewi, commented, “We are very excited about the opportunity to bring together some of the brightest minds from across the world and the UAE to compete in this event that promotes our three E’s: Education, Energy, and the Environment.”