UAE-Made Electric Vehicle Takes Center Stage at Energy Conference

The Rabdan One, a five-seater SUV, is one of the first electric vehicles to be manufactured in the UAE and is proving to be a popular attraction at the Adipec 2023 gathering in Abu Dhabi. 

The SUV is featured prominently at the UAE Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology’s booth, and its popularity among those in attendance occasionally creates congestion in terms of foot traffic.

“Hopefully this is just the beginning of the establishment of an electric vehicle industry in the UAE,” said Tariq Al Hashmi, the ministry's director of technology adoption and development.

“It’s part of our ‘Operation 300bn’ programme,” he added, referring to the UAE’s 10-year industrial strategy announced in 2022 that seeks to double the share of the manufacturing sector to the country's gross domestic product to Dh300 billion by 2031 from Dh133 billion in 2021. The Rabdan One is made by NWTN, a UAE electric car maker headquartered in Dubai with a vehicle assembly facility in Abu Dhabi.

NWTN also showed off a luxury smart passenger vehicle, the Rabdan Muse, at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance car show in California last month.

The vehicle on display at Adipec had "Made In The Emirates" displayed on the doors and bonnet, which is in line with the country's initiative to promote local manufacturing.