The Minister of Industry and Commerce and Tourism of the Kingdom of Bahrain opened “the Mobility 360 Innovation in Sustainable Mobility Conference”
HE Sheikh Zayed bin Rashid Al-Zayani, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism of the Kingdom of Bahrain, and HE Mr. Saud bin Nasser Al-Khusaibi, Secretary General of the GCC Standardization Organization (GSO), opened on Sunday, second of September 2018, the Mobility 360 Innovation in Sustainable Mobility Conference and Exhibition at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Center with the participation of a number of senior officials and a number of specialists at the local, regional and international levels from the industrial, legislative and research sectors.
The two-day conference, organized by the ministry through Messe Frankfurt Middle East, a leading trade show organizer, and in partnership with the Gulf Standardization Organization (GSO) featured a series of talks and panel discussions along with an exhibition showcasing hybrid vehicles.
In his speech, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism confirmed the Kingdom’s interest to keep up with the rapid changes in automotive industry and the relevant international legislations and conventions governing the mobility of the future to be safe, secure, clean, smart and efficient, and more environmentally friendly. “The adoption by the United Nations of an initiative to make urban electric vehicles up to 30% of total transport by 2030 has begun to be achieved and verified, according to the International Energy Agency’s 2018 report, 3 million cars worldwide. ”
He added, turning to the local situation, the minister said: “We are working to activate the national energy efficiency plan adopted by the Cabinet of Bahrain to increase energy efficiency by 6% by 2025 as part of an action plan to reduce gas pollutions, and electric vehicles play a pivotal role in achieving this ratio. Minister Alzayani mentioned that this conference is a step in the process of achieving the energy efficiency of vehicles and will be followed by accelerated steps to adopt the Gulf Technical Regulations for electric vehicles as well as in the preparation of the necessary infrastructure. It is hoped that this regulation will apply to the models of vehicles in 2020, and the adoption of Gulf certificates issued to them.
HE Saud bin Nasser Al-Khusaibi, Secretary General of the GCC Standardization organization (GSO), mentioned that the Gulf technical regulations are currently being issued concerning the safety requirements of electrical vehicles. The GSO will soon be preparing draft technical regulations for the GCC related to self-propelled vehicles and the necessary technical infrastructure. GSO required manufacturers to apply the technical regulations for the vehicles through the on-line GCC Conformity Certification system.”
“There is growing interest in sustainable mobility in the region, and many countries in the region have implemented initiatives aimed at increasing the absorption of alternative energy vehicles or considering the possibility of transforming their transport sector into a more efficient system,” said Ahmed Pauls, CEO of Messe Frankfurt, organizer of the conference. Under the National Energy Efficiency Plan adopted by the Government of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the transport sector in the Kingdom is undergoing major changes.
On the sidelines of the conference, which was attended by local and Gulf participants, a number of participants from Sweden, Japan, India, Korea and Turkey. The accompanying exhibition was opened, and there was a number of models of electric vehicles. Exhibitors showed the advantages of these cars in terms of Safety, intelligence, technology and high efficiency. Two electric cars were also available for conference participants to register for their leadership experience. Registration saw a high turnout.
