Dubai: Authorities in the UAE are developing a new unit to evaluate vehicles’ performance in the desert, and it’s called Desert Camel Power.

The Emirates Authority For Standardisation and Metrology (ESMA) is collaborating with Nissan Middle East after the automaker announced the introduction of Desert Camel Power, reported the state news agency Wam recently.

Khalaf Al Hammadi, head of ESMA's Standards Department, said: "The focus is now on undertaking more tests in the UAE desert to determine the performance of vehicles in an unusual environment.

Al Hammadi pointed out that the new standard is expected to be officially introduced by the end of this year.

"The camel power would be adopted at a later stage as a national standard for all vehicles. It will be presented to the standardisation authority of the Gulf Co-operation Council as well as global regulators," he said.

Developed by Nissan engineers, Desert Camel Power uses a scientifically proven formula to determine how a given vehicle will perform in typical off-road desert conditions.

Just as horsepower can be calculated, so can Desert Camel Power, which raises the prospect of an at-a-glance indication of a vehicle’s desert fitness, according to Nissan Middle East.

The scientific measurement can be rendered as: CP = velocity x weight x sin (trajectory).

Nissan developed the formula to help bring clarity to the endless discussions about the inherent off-road capabilities of Sport Utility Vehicles (SUV) in the Gulf market, which is expected to revolutionise the way vehicles are evaluated for desert performance.

Desert Camel Power will be used in all Nissan Middle East showrooms and marketing literature to define the desert capabilities of Nissan’s SUV line-up.