This Spring Student Teams From Across North and South America Will Travel Thousands of Miles...Per Gallon
2009 Shell Eco-marathon Americas(R) will welcome 52 student teams looking to go the extra mile
HOUSTON, March 27 -- While most high school and college students are busy writing papers and preparing for exams, a select group from across the Americas are taking what they've learned in the classroom and putting it to practical use - building high-mileage, fuel-efficient vehicles for the 2009 Shell Eco-marathon Americas(R). After months of coordinating designs and constructing vehicles, 52 student teams - including nine high schools and 32 universities - are in the final stretch as they work to complete their vehicles for the 2009 challenge taking place April 16-18 at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. Not only are these students looking to break the nearly 3,000 miles per gallon (1,275 kilometres per liter) record set in 2008, they are providing the world a glimpse into the fuels, technologies and transportation of tomorrow.
"By participating in the Shell Eco-marathon Americas, we have the opportunity to study new fuel-efficient technologies in automotive applications and gain practical experience for the future," said Andrew Ritter, student team leader of the Mater Dei High School team, who set the Shell Eco-marathon Americas record in 2008 with an astonishing 2,843 miles per gallon, equivalent to 1,208.6 kilometers per liter. "Last year, we didn't think our team could compete with such elite colleges, but we ended up breaking the 2007 record in our first run. And that motivated our team to keep pushing the limits of fuel efficiency, both on the track and in the classroom."
This year, student teams will participate in either the "Prototype" or "UrbanConcept" categories. For the Prototype category, teams will enter futuristic prototypes - streamlined vehicles that focus on maximizing fuel efficiency through innovative design elements, such as drag reduction. For the UrbanConcept category, new to the Americas event this year, teams will enter more "roadworthy" fuel-efficient vehicles. Aimed at meeting the real-life needs of drivers, these vehicles are closer in appearance to the higher-mileage cars seen on roads today. For both categories, teams can use any conventionally available energy source - including fuels such as diesel, gasoline and liquid petroleum gas (LPG), as well as alternative fuels such as hydrogen, biomass and solar.
The Shell Eco-marathon(R) is a global mileage challenge and forum for current and future leaders who are passionate about finding sustainable solutions to the world's energy challenge. The event challenges students to design, build and test eco-friendly vehicles that travel further using less energy. From vehicle design to financing, student teams manage their projects from start to finish. The winning teams in both the Prototype and UrbanConcept categories receive a grand prize of US$5,000 for their school. And this year, Shell will also have several "off-track" awards, including the "Safety Award," "Technical Innovation Award" and "Eco-friendly Award" among others.
The 2009 Shell Eco-marathon Americas roster contains 52 teams from nine high schools and 32 universities from North and South America - including Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the United States. The Prototype entries include 35 vehicles powered by combustion engines, five by fuel cell/hydrogen technology, three by LPG, three by solar power, two by diesel fuel, and one by ethanol gas. The UrbanConcept entries include two vehicles powered by combustion engines and one by solar power.
The complete 2009 Shell Eco-marathon Americas roster is:
Prototype Category:
Combustion Engine Entrants:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
Barstow High School Barstow, Calif. AZ-TECHS Stingray
806
California Polytechnic San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly Black
State University Calif. Supermileage Widow
California State Chico, Calif. Suffrage One
University, Chico
California State Los Angeles, Calif. CSULA Super
University, Los Angeles Supermileage Eagle II
Cedarville University Cedarville, Ohio Jackets Slipstream
Racing II
Cedarville University Cedarville, Ohio GL4 GL4
Centennial High School Corona, Calif. Huskies El Nino
Centro de Investigaciones Mexico City, Mexico Nemesis CLRT
de Diseno Industrial
(CIDI) / Universidad
Nacional Autonoma de
Mexico (UNAM)
Chitkara Institute of Punjab, India TEAM STEALTH STEALTH
Engineering &
Technology /
Punjab Technical
University
Colorado School of Mines Denver, Colo. Colorado Blaster
School of
Mines
Dalhousie University Halifax, Nova Dalhousie Maritime
Scotia Supermileage Mileage-
machine
Design School/ State Belo Horizonte, Team Sabia Sabia 6
University of Minas Minas Gerais
Gerais
East Los Angeles College Monterey Park, Calif. Huskies Phantom
George M. Schurr
High School Montebello, Calif. Spartans R7
Grand Rapids Technical Grand Rapids, Minn. G-Rock Fastest
School Indian
Louisiana State Baton Rouge, La. Tiger Racing Chitty
University Chitty
Bang Bang
Louisiana Tech University Ruston, La. LA Tech De
Bulldogs Donderhond
Loyola Marymount Los Angeles, Calif. Gen2 Gen2
University
Loyola Marymount Los Angeles, Calif. Team RAMROD Tip of
University the Spear
Mater Dei High School Evansville, Ind. Mater Dei Next Gen
Supermileage II
Team
Monrovia High School Monrovia, Calif. Team Green The Green
Machine
Northern Arizona Flagstaff, Ariz. Team SAE@NAU Ragnarok
University
R. L. Turner High School Carrollton, Texas Turner Microsquirt
Rochester Institute Rochester, NY RIT X1
of Technology Greenvehicle
Team
Rose-Hulman Institute of Terre Haute, Ind. R-H RHEV
Technology Efficient 74
Vehicles
Rose-Hulman Institute Terre Haute, Ind. R-H Efficient RHEV
of Technology Vehicles 74++
Summit High School Fontana, Calif. Skyhawks Skyhawk
University of California, Berkeley, Calif. Cal SMV Care Bear
Berkeley
University of California, Los Angeles, Calif. Supermileage The
Los Angeles Enterprise
Universidad Nacional Mexico City, Mexico Escuderia Ahuicyani
Autonoma de Mexico - Puma
Facultad de Ingenieria
University of California, Santa Barbara, Calif. UCSB Gauchos Gaucho
Santa Barbara Mileage
Universite Laval Laval, Quebec Alerion NTF 3.0
Supermileage
University of Colorado, Boulder, Colo. CU-L.A.T.E.R F-CAT
Boulder
University of Houston Houston, Texas Team SAECO Phoenix
University Of Texas, El El Paso, Texas Miner Dilema Orochi
Paso
Fuel Cell Entrants:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
Cicero North-Syracuse Cicero, N.Y. Performance Pure
High School Engineering Speed
Team
Lamar University Beaumont, Texas Rebel 1602
Alliance
Los Altos High School Hacienda Heights, Hacienda La Infusion
Calif. Puente
Unified
School
District
North Carolina A&T Greensboro, N.C. Aggie Aggie
State University
Penn State University University Park, Pa. Blood Sweat Penn State
& Gears HFV
LPG Entrant:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
George M. Schurr Montebello, Calif. Spartans Spartan
High School
George M. Schurr Montebello, Calif. Spartans Destiny
High School
George M. Schurr Montebello, Calif. Spartans Mach 1
High School
Solar Entrants:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
Centennial High School Corona County, Calif. Huskies The Blur
Purdue University West Lafayette, Ind. Purdue Racing
Solar Pulsar
Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio OSU Solar Red Shift
Firefly 2
Diesel Entrants:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
College of the Redwoods Eureka, Calif. Diesel Diesel
Corsair Corsair
Wright State University Dayton, Ohio Raider Eco-Raider
Engineering
Ethanol Entrant:
Los Altos High School Hacienda Heights, Hacienda La HICE
Calif. Puente
Unified
School
District
UrbanConcept Category:
Combustion Engine Entrants:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
Louisiana Tech
University Ruston, La. Tech EcoCar Urban Car
Mater Dei High School Evansville, Ind. Mater Dei Street Buggy
Supermileage
Team
Solar Entrant:
School Location Team Name Vehicle
Name
The University of Tucson, Ariz. Arizona SolarCat
Arizona Solar Racing
Team
To help ensure the 2009 Shell Eco-marathon Americas is a successful event for all the student participants, Shell is pleased to welcome the 2009 event sponsors, including Autodesk, Michelin, Pennzoil and SKF USA Inc.
With many successful years in Europe, the Shell Eco-marathon came back to the U.S. as the Shell Eco-marathon Americas in April 2007. The Shell Eco-marathon concept started as the Shell Mileage Marathon in 1939 between employees of Shell at a research laboratory in Wood River, Illinois. Today, the Americas event extends to student teams from across North and South America.
In Europe, the 2009 Shell Eco-marathon project will take place at the EuroSpeedway in Lausitz, Germany. The 2008 European event attracted teams from 20 countries, with the winning teams hailing from France, the Netherlands and Sweden. Plans are also underway to bring the Shell Eco-marathon to Asia in 2010.
For more information on the Shell Eco-marathon Americas, please visit www.shell.com/ecomarathon.
Shell Oil Company, including its consolidated companies and its share in equity companies, is one of America's leading oil and natural gas producers, natural gas marketers, gasoline marketers and petrochemical manufacturers. Shell, a leading oil and gas producer in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico, is a recognized pioneer in oil and gas exploration and production technology. Shell Oil Company is an affiliate of the Shell Group, a global group of energy and petrochemical companies, employing approximately 104,000 people and operating in more than 110 countries and territories.
Disclaimer statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Royal Dutch Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Royal Dutch Shell to market risks and statements expressing management's expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as ''anticipate'', ''believe'', ''could'', ''estimate'', ''expect'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''plan'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''will'', ''seek'', ''target'', ''risks'', ''goals'', ''should'' and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Royal Dutch Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this Report, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for the Group's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserve estimates; (f) loss of market and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments including potential litigation and regulatory effects arising from recategorisation of reserves; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, project delay or advancement, approvals and cost estimates; and (m) changes in trading conditions. All forward-looking statements contained in this presentation are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this presentation, May 4, 2006. Neither Royal Dutch Shell nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this document.
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) permits oil and gas companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved reserves that a company has demonstrated by actual production or conclusive formation tests to be economically and legally producible under existing economic and operating conditions. We use certain terms in this presentation, such as "oil in place" that the SEC's guidelines strictly prohibit us from including in filings with the SEC. U.S. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575 and disclosure in our Forms 6-K file No, 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov. You can also obtain these forms from the SEC by calling 1-800-SEC-0330.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Team roster list as of 3/24/09. High-resolution photos and video of the 2008 Shell Eco-marathon Americas is available at http://www.shell.com/uswww.shell.com/ecomarathon. For assistance, please contact the Shell Media Line at 713-241-4544.
