The tight grip that camels have traditionally held on oil-free driving in the sandy lands of the United Arab Emirates may be loosening. Although those iconic ships-of-the-desert have long held sway for those who did not want to be beholden to oil companies, vehicles from Tesla Motors may soon begin impinging on their turf. Not only is Tesla in talks to supply sedans to act as beasts of burden, carrying visitors and their baggage about, but they may also be getting a toe-hold in another historic camel arena, racing.

Tesla is in talks with separate ventures in Abu Dhabi and Qatar who would both like to set up electric car championships. Could that happen? Tesla's Simon Rochefort said, "The two investor groups are very serious about this, and these projects have a real chance of coming through." The other major deal involves a company who wants a couple dozen Roadsters to offer as rental vehicles for a renewable enery-powered resort located on an island they are currently building. That's in addition to the Roadsters they'd like to pair up with properties they will have available for sale. To top it all off, the un-named company also wants 100 future sedans to operate as Tesla taxis. But how well can this new camel competitor handle the sandy environment? This video may offer a clue.

[Source: The National via Tesla Motors Club]

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GM has been testing its hybrids as taxis in Dubai since January and the results so far have been so encouraging they feel they may be able to replace the emirates' entire fleet of taxis, government and emergency vehicles by 2012. Despite the heat, sand and humidity on crowded streets, the test fleet has not only held up but also demonstrated their ability to achieve significant cuts in fuel usage and carbon emissions. His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai (and father of 18 children) "challenged" the Dubai Road and Transport Authority (RTA) to pursue an aggressive hybrid implementation strategy in early 2007. The authorities hope that by setting a positive example, ordinary citizens will follow suit, thereby reducing vehicular pollution and making Dubai a more environmentally friendly place. GM saw an opportunity to help itself out and reportedly approached the RTA to begin the relationship. At the conclusion of data analysis the commercialization phase should begin. GM expects to be able to supply 5,000 to 6,000 hybrid vehicles for Dubai with the possibility of an additional 4,000 hybrids for the neighboring emirate of Abu Dhabi. Hit the jump for a bonus video of a pair of GM hybrids cruising the streets of the emirate in an RTA infomercial.


[Source: Khaleej Times]

While the government of Dubai is testing in Chevy Tahoe Hybrids as taxis, ordinary drivers aren't being quite so conscientious. So far record high prices for crude oil aren't being felt at the pump by drivers. While Americans are now paying over $4/gallon for gasoline, people in Dubai are paying only $1.36. Dubai itself has limited oil supplies and is getting only six percent of its revenue directly from crude. Nonetheless, the high price of oil benefits Dubai as people from more oil rich areas of the Middle East invest and spend their money in the emirate. That means residents of Dubai have cash to spend and manufacturers of big powerful vehicles are the beneficiaries. GM may be having trouble moving HUMMERS and Escalades in the US but they are still extremely popular in Dubai as are big Mercedes, Bugattis and Nissan GT-Rs. Sales of full-size SUVs grew 40 percent in the Middle East in the first quarter of 2008. Unfortunately for GM, the absolute numbers are still far too small to keep the U.S. factories that build those big trucks running.

[Source: International Herald Tribune]

While New York City is using Ford Escape Hybrids as taxis, that simply wouldn't do in the Middle East. General Motors has delivered ten of its Chevy Tahoe hybrids to the Dubai government for a taxi fleet test. The test program was kicked off by His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai at an event held at the Monarch Hotel in Dubai. The attendees at the event also watched a "documentary" on hybrids that discussed the efforts to reduce emissions and fuel consumption in the UAE (of which Dubai is a part).

The Roads & Transport Authority's (RTA) has also submitted two draft laws that would cut carbon monoxide emissions and prevent the registration of cars more than 20 years old. The limit will drop to 15 years old after 2010. Fortunately Dubai is wealthy enough to be able to get away with something like that. Such a restriction could never be accomplished in North America as there are just way too many older vehicles on the road here. The GM press release is after the jump.

Photo by Soylentgreen23. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

As we noted when Dubai announced a test of GM Hybrids for taxi and limo service, just because the Emirate has a lot of oil doesn't mean it isn't interested in checking out alternatives. News is out today that the Dubai Group has
made a large ($49.5 million U.S.) investment in Malaysian biodiesel company GBD and now has a 30 percent stake in that company. The emirate-owned Dubai Investment Group's CEO, Abdulhakeem Kamkar, said that renewable energy and biofuels are the "preferred industry focus" for the DIG (the DIG is a subsidiary of Dubai Group). By the end of the year, GBD's huge biodiesel plant should be able to produce up to 500,000 metric tons of biodiesel a year from palm oil (d'oh) and jathropha.

[Source: Cleantech]

Dubai may sit on some of the biggest oil deposits in the world, but that doesn't mean that they don't want to make them last a little longer by using less locally. To that end, the Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) will be working with GM to start testing a fleet of Chevy Tahoe and Malibu hybrids for use as limos and taxis in the Persian Gulf emirate. For one year starting in January, the hybrids will be evaluated in service around Dubai to validate the durability for the application. If the program works out, the Dubai RTA may switch over their entire fleet beginning in early 2009.

[Source: General Motors]

We are getting pretty used to seeing DIY electric cars on these pages, but not too many DIY solar electric cars. But, that is exactly what one man in the United Arab Emirates did. Saqr Bin Saif's creation seats two people in a reclined position and tops out at about 50 kilometers per hour, which is about 30 miles per hour. The vehicle was built in three months, after about four months worth of planning. The solar panels generate 170 watts of power to the batteries, which actually are what powers the vehicle, meaning that the car does not always need the sun to operate. Click here to find out more.

[Source: Gulf News]