Emirates Driving Institute Drives Green, Adopts CNG for its Cars

Dubai UAE, 24^th January, 2015

Emirates Driving Institute announced today that 50 of its training vehicles have been converted to use CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) fuel. EDI is the first driving institute in UAE to use CNG for its vehicles. All the converted cars carry a ‘NGV’ label on left side which indicates that they are ‘Natural Gas Vehicles’. A natural gas vehicle is an alternative fuel vehicle that uses compressed natural gas as a cleaner alternative to other fossil fuels.

This has been accomplished in association with Emirates Transport; EDI plans to have 50 more Natural Gas vehicles very soon.  Emirates Transport has provided a mobile gas filling station to EDI for a continuous fuel supply.

In the long run, EDI plans to convert 350 vehicles to NGV and will also install a dedicated CNG daughter station at our premises to facilitate 24X7 fuel supply.

Mr. Amer Ahmed Belhasa, Managing Director, Emirates Driving Institute said “Conversion of our training vehicles into NGVs reaffirms EDI’s commitment towards reducing carbon footprint and is a step further towards creating a greener future. The environmentally clean CNG is not only the cleanest burning fuel operating today but also provides other benefits such as less vehicle maintenance and a longer engine life. At EDI, we are always on a mission to create world-class infrastructure with best quality facilities which are not only high on efficiency but also environmental friendly.”

Our records to date show that the CNG fuel usage at EDI is having a positive impact both from environmental and economic point of view. Emirates Gas has recently concluded trials at Dubai Airports and according to the emission data collected from the trial, it is evident that by converting 350 petrol vehicles to NCG, one can save 600 tons of CO2 emissions compared to petrol. EDI hope to achieve the same level of CO2 reduction by converting a fleet of 350 training vehicles to CNG.

Huge untapped opportunity for UAE:

1. UAE ranks 6^th in natural gas reserve in the world
2. As CNG is lighter than air, the vehicles using it are safer compared to petrol because in case of an accident it does not catch fire easily
3. CNG has great impact on reducing carbon footprint. The savings on CO2 emissions are 1.5 tons per car per year. For buses it is a saving of 2.2 tons per bus per annum.
4. Abu Dhabi has 3000 Natural Gas vehicles while Dubai just has 300 and Sharjah – 350.
5. The maintenance cost is reduced by 40% in using CNG. Also, the oil change & spark plug change is required less frequently. Hence, the low operation & maintenance cost makes it a very lucrative option. The vehicle life is increased and the insurance premiums are also lower on NGVs.
6. The economic advantages creates a demand for NGVs- For eg-

Earlier, EDI also attained LEED EBOM certification and is the first driving institute worldwide to achieve this. LEED stands for "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design," and is shorthand for the USGBC's LEED Green Building Rating System family of standards. The LEED standards are national, voluntary, consensus-based guidelines for developing and operating high-performance, environmentally sustainable buildings.

About EDI:

Emirates Driving Institute is the largest and the most successful Driving Institute in Dubai and the Middle East and has been in operation since 1991. Around 250,000 students have acquired their driving licenses from EDI since then. It has a fleet of over 1000 vehicles in different vehicle categories such as Light Motor Vehicle (LMV), Heavy Bus (HVB), Heavy Truck (HVT), Shovel, Forklift, and Motor Cycles. EDI has over 1000 qualified Male and Female Instructors of different nationalities who can instruct the students in their primary language making it easier for them to take their driver training.

For Press Contacts;

Nikita Rahman

PR & Communications Officer

nikita.r@edi.ae

# 00971-4 2631100 Ext.479