Muscat: The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MOCIIP), represented by the Directorate General of Standards and Metrology, and in cooperation with the competent authorities, will implement Ministerial Resolution No. (45/2023) considering the Gulf Standard Specification No. (GSO2698:2022) as a binding Omani standard specification for electric vehicles from May 1.
The Gulf Standard specification aims to specify the technical safety requirements for electric vehicles in terms of the safety of the driver and passengers by avoiding accidents and electric shocks and to ensure driving a high-performance car at a lower cost than conventional combustion vehicles.
Manufacturers and importers are required to submit a certificate of conformity approved by the Gulf Standardization Organization as a condition for clearance of new electric vehicles.
Engineer Yaqoub bin Saleh Al-Saadi, a mechanical engineer in the Conformity Department of the General Directorate of Standards and Metrology at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, said this decision will create a new sector for electric car spare parts, maintenance service workshops, and skilled national labor. , advanced technology, financing and insurance services, vehicle charging stations, opportunities to localize modern industries, and strengthening supply chains.
He added that the environmental objective is to support the transition from vehicles powered by fossil fuels to new and renewable energy in line with the efforts and policies of the state aimed at reducing carbon emissions resulting from fuel combustion to achieve zero carbon neutrality.
Al Saadi said the application of GCC standard applies to all-electric vehicles whose speed exceeds 25 km / h, and electric motor vehicles are those that operate on alternative fuels for propulsion instead of the most common methods such as the internal combustion engine.
Apart from reducing the rate of car exhaust that contribute to reducing global warming, it will help in controlling noise pollution due to the complete quietness of electric car engines.
The provisions of this standard are applicable to all-electric vehicles with a speed exceeding 25 km/h, while electric motor vehicles are considered to be those being operated by using alternative fuels instead of the most common methods of the internal combustion engine.
The standard includes safety and electrical protection requirements in order to reduce accidents; deaths and electric shocks that can be caused by leakage of electricity from batteries and leakage of battery components in the passenger cabin.
The specification also includes requirements to absorb crashes, in order to reduce injuries to the chest, neck, or head.
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