The Abu Dhabi Solar Challenge (ADSC) was announced during the Abu Dhabi Ascent conference on climate change on 5th July 14. Twenty teams from across the world will compete in the challenge which is sponsored by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and hosted by Abu Dhabi's renewable energy company Masdar. The event is sanctioned by the International Solar car Federation (ISF) and jointly organised by Global EEE and Professional Sports Group.

The teams will compete in the international green event like the World Solar Challenge in Australia and the American Solar Challenge in the USA. This will be the first ever solar car competition in the UAE. The 1,200km long ADSC will take place from January 16-19, 2015. The race is proposed during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week in 2015.

"When I started, the solar car could reach a maximum speed of 23kmph, but nowadays the cars reach 100kmph" said Hans Tholstrup, president of the International Solar Car Federation. He was the first one to build a solar car, the "Quiet Achiever" in 1982, which he drove across Australia. These cars are not meant for commercial purposes, but each of them pave the way for research and development to improve energy efficient transport solutions.

Dr Nabih Bedewi, ADSC event director said "The cars will run purely on solar energy. They are not being made for commercial purposes, but for educational and technological ones". The players will be teamed with the UAE universities teams to enable the  local students to learn from the world's best professionals. After the car is built, a team of professionals will test it for four days to ensure its safety. "We will have students building cars  and driving them at high speed on the roads . We will have a team of over 100 people working on this event to ensure everyone's safety," stressed Bedewi. "These cars push efficiency and they inspired the electrical and hybrid cars produced today. Many of the students who took part in this challenge are now working for car companies,? said Bedewi.

The last date for teams registration is August 1. The solar cars will be thoroughly inspected during the second week of January 13-14, followed by a qualifying round on January 15 and then a four-day race through Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Liwa, finishing in Abu Dhabi on the last day of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.