Next generation of scientists and engineers engage Detroit automakers on today's and tomorrow's mobility

HOUSTON, Jan. 8, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- In less than 100 days, more than a thousand students will hit the streets of downtown Detroit with their ultra-energy efficient cars for Shell Eco-marathon Americas. Nearly 30 students representing 15 teams from across the Americas – Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the United States – took time out from building their cars to get behind-the-scenes innovation lab experiences at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA US LLC) and Ford Motor Company, including a tour of the Ford Rouge Factory. Leaders and engineers at FCA US and Ford visited with the students and showcased new technologies, which could influence how we transport people and goods in the future.  

"We look for young people who aspire to careers in the automotive industry," said Georgette Dulworth, director of talent acquisitions and diversity at FCA US. "When we can work with other organizations, like Shell, who are promoting science, technology, engineering and math fields, we see it as an opportunity to engage the pipeline of our future employees."

April 2015 marks the first time this signature event will be held in the heart of the US auto industry's historic birthplace in Detroit. Student teams will drive their low-slung, futuristic vehicles on the city streets around Cobo Center to achieve one goal: to drive the farthest distance, using the least amount of energy.

"We learned a lot during the tours with Ford and FCA. It was great to see that we have a lot of the same test facilities on our campus as does Ford and FCA - just on a much smaller scale," said Seth Anderson, a student at Louisiana Tech University. "Now we can take some of their same simulations and test our cars to see how we can best optimize them for an urban setting."

Programs like Shell Eco-marathon Americas provide tangible hands-on, project-based learning examples of innovation, passion and teamwork in action and help inspire ways to use less energy and promote efficiency and sustainability.

"It's great to see a group of young people who are spending their time to solve a considerable challenge as a team," said Craig C. Stephens, chief engineer for controls engineering research and advanced engineering at Ford Motor Company. "It's exciting to look at the wide variety of vehicles and ideas that they come up with. It shows that ingenuity and innovation are alive and well today."

Last year, Shell and The Henry Ford announced a multi-year "Partnership in Innovation" based on a shared vision: to inspire future innovators who will tackle critical challenges like the future of energy and sustainable mobility.

"At Shell, our aim is to help meet the world's growing energy needs in a responsible way. We are taking action today through programs like Shell Eco-marathon to help prepare future engineers for tomorrow's energy and environmental challenges," said Niel Golightly, Shell vice president external affairs for the Americas. "We value the collaboration that's needed to help uncover innovative solutions that could have a positive impact on our use of energy in the future."

The public is invited to witness these feats of innovation and to also go on a free, interactive journey for all ages into the world's energy future while visiting Shell Eco-marathon Americas, April 10-12, 2015, inside Cobo Center.

Free tickets for Shell Eco-marathon Americas are available at www.shellecomarathon.us. For more information about all 2015 events across the globe, including additional details on vehicle class requirements, official rules and details on prizes, please visit the Shell Eco-marathon website at www.shell.com/ecomarathon. 

Note to Editors: Photos, broadcast-quality b-roll, and social media film can be downloaded via the dropbox link below:

• Behind-the-scenes with the students, FCA US and Ford technical leads and engineers in Detroit.

About Shell Oil Company
Shell Oil Company is an affiliate of the Royal Dutch Shell plc, a global group of energy and petrochemical companies with 93,000 employees in more than 90 countries. We deliver a diverse range of energy solutions and petrochemicals to customers worldwide. These include transporting and trading oil and gas, marketing natural gas, producing and selling fuel for ships and planes, generating electricity and providing energy efficiency advice.

We also produce and sell petrochemical building blocks to industrial customers globally, and we are investing in making renewable and lower-carbon energy sources competitive for large-scale use. In the U.S., we operate in 50 states and employ more than 20,000 people delivering energy in a responsible manner.

About Shell Eco-marathon
Shell Eco-marathon is a global program that challenges high school and college student teams to design, build and test the most energy-efficient vehicles. With annual events in the Americas, Europe and Asia, this innovation competition pushes future scientists and engineers to travel the farthest distance using the least amount of energy. Shell Eco-marathon Americas 2015 will take place April 9th-12th on the streets of Downtown Detroit and will be open to the public. Visit  www.shellecomarathon.us to learn more about this weekend of free programs for all ages.

Cautionary Note

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate entities. In this press release "Shell", "Shell group" and "Royal Dutch Shell" are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words "we", "us" and "our" are also used to refer to subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These expressions are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular company or companies. ''Subsidiaries'', "Shell subsidiaries" and "Shell companies" as used in this press release refer to companies in which Royal Dutch Shell either directly or indirectly has control, by having either a majority of the voting rights or the right to exercise a controlling influence. The companies in which Shell has significant influence but not control are referred to as "associated companies" or "associates" and companies in which Shell has joint control are referred to as "jointly controlled entities". In this press release, associates and jointly controlled entities are also referred to as "equity-accounted investments". The term "Shell interest" is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect (for example, through our 23% shareholding in Woodside Petroleum Ltd.) ownership interest held by Shell in a venture, partnership or company, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

This press release 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'', ''goals'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''plan'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''risks'', ''seek'', ''should'', ''target'', ''will'' 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 press release, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share 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 regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; and (m) changes in trading conditions. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release 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. Additional factors that may affect future results are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2013 (available at www.shell.com/investor and www.sec.gov). These factors also should be considered by the reader.  Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this press release, January 8, 2015. 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 press release.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this press release that United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC.  U.S. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, 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.

SOURCE Shell Oil Company

Related Links

http://www.shellecomarathon.us

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