Porsche Mission E
In 2018, the race is on for the first Arab country to embrace electric vehicle technology… but do we want it?
This year, the second annual Global EVRT (electric vehicle road trip) was held through the UAE and Oman, reserved exclusively for electric vehicles that are either already on sale or are due to be released in the region soon. The trip covered more than 2 000km, driving through all seven Emirates as well as Muscat and Sohar in Oman without using a drop of petrol and only recharging at publically available locations en route. The nine-day event also welcomed the installation of 18 electric vehicle charging stations, which were officially opened to the public along the way.
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“The electric vehicle market here has developed significantly in the last 12 months, particularly in the UAE,” says Ben Pullen, managing director of Global EVRT. The region’s willingness to embrace alternative fuel sources is widespread, with Jordan and Saudi Arabia also in the mix to encourage motorists to switch to electric vehicles within the next five years. Jordan has long been a torchbearer in the search to find alternative fuels and was the first Gulf country to incentivize the use of hybrid vehicles at both private and government levels. It was also the first country in the region to install chargers, including DC fast chargers from manufacturer ABB, as part of that company’s global rollout of more than 5 000 units across 50 countries. The Global EVRT fleet was dominated by Tesla but also included the soon-to-be-launched Chevrolet Bolt EV, which tackled a variety of terrain from the Abu Dhabi desert to the Omani mountains and the coastline of the Northern Emirates.
“It’s fantastic to see that there are other forward-thinking governments and industries in this region, such as Oman, who are already working on smart city development with plans for electric vehicles in the near future,” Pullen says.
2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV
I took the wheel of the Chevrolet Bolt EV for the final days from Fujairah to Dubai via Ras Al Khaimah, including the 1 934m climb to the peak of the UAE’s tallest mountain, Jebel Jais. Not treating it like an economy run, I drove the Bolt as I would drive any small car, kept up to pace with the flowing traffic, ran the AC, and carried three passengers with luggage. Apart from being silent, the biggest difference is the torque. The car tackled the mountain probably better than conventional petrol cars – not needing to gear down to overtake, I just planted my foot and the overtaking power was instant. I left the hotel with 325km range showing and made it to the top of the mountain by lunch showing 147km. It regenerated an extra 10km by the bottom, giving me 157km to get to the hotel at the end of the day, where I arrived with 104km remaining. After an overnight top-up, we drove three hours into Dubai’s Sustainable City with 150km remaining. “What we proved is that you can drive long distances in an electric car without compromise,” Pullen says. “These cars can do the weekend trip to Fujairah and drive to Abu Dhabi for work during the week.” Gary West, urban active operations manager for General Motors International, adds, “The demand for electric vehicles is expanding globally each year and the Middle East is well positioned to be a strong market for low-emission cars. We are proud to bring the Chevrolet Bolt EV to the region, which we know will form the backbone of the electric vehicle fleet.”
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According to a recent report by Deloitte Middle East for the Saudi Energy Efficiency Center, there will be up to 1.5 billion cars on the world’s roads by 2050, compared to 750 million in 2010. It found that comparing a small, fuel-efficient, four-cylinder car – in this case a Ford Focus – with an electric vehicle of the same size over one year will save the motorist US $141 in fuel costs. In 2014, almost 830 000 passenger cars and commercial vehicles were sold in Saudi Arabia. Based on these numbers, Deloitte estimates that if 5% of the sales in the Kingdom from 2015 to 2022 were electric vehicles, it would save US $47 million. If electric vehicles comprised 25% of Saudi sales, the report claims the saving would be US $236 million, as well as saving a billion tons of carbon emissions over seven years.
2018 Chevrolet Bolt EV
However, when the cost of petrol remains among the world’s cheapest, it’s a hard task to convince motorists to make the switch – unless there are substantial government incentives, which is something the UAE is actively pursuing. An program launched by the Ministry of Energy last year encourages UAE motorists to buy electric vehicles through offering cheap bank loans, insurance, registration, and attractive purchase prices.
“We are working on a road map to expedite a 15% reduction of carbon emissions by 2020,” the UAE Minister of Energy, HE Suhail Mohamed Faraj Al Mazrouei, says, adding that plans also include 20% targets for electric vehicle adoption within the government’s own fleet. “It’s good news for consumers because it’s cooperating with banks, car companies, and insurance firms to educate electric vehicle buyers on the benefits of going green.”
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The UAE is ranked eighth from 20 countries when it comes to its readiness to accommodate driverless vehicles, according to a global survey by KPMG. The KPMG Autonomous Vehicle Readiness Index placed the UAE above South Korea and New Zealand after it assessed each country’s ability to deliver according to the four pillars of policy, legislation, technology, and innovation. “The UAE’s desire to excel in the field of technology- led innovation will ensure that the nation is at the front of urban autonomous mobility,” says Ravi Suri, global head of infrastructure finance for KPMB Lower Gulf. “The findings from the successful implementation of self-driven vehicles will ensure that the Emirates maintains its leading position in autonomous mobility.” Much faith has been placed in the Middle East to lead with renewable energy, to the point that the International Renewable Energy Agency chose Abu Dhabi for its global headquarters. The automotive industry predicts there will be more than 100 electric and hybrid models on the market within the next two years, half of which being purely electric and all offering a range of 400km or more between charges.
Nissan Leaf – Recharging Illustration
Also seeing the potential for electric vehicles in this region, Nissan will launch its all-electric Leaf into the Middle East later this year. The Leaf will represent a new direction for the brand, says president and CEO Hiroto Saikawa. “We believe that the future of electric vehicles will come sooner rather than later. By 2019, people will start jumping into them. From 2020 to 2025, the substantial migration from the internal combustion engine across to electric will follow and when it does, the experience is going to be multiplied because very soon; it will no longer be a niche.”
Originally printed in the Vogue Man Arabia Spring/Summer 2018 issue.
Words by Damien Reid.
