Education minister Muhammad Nuh who attended the launch named the car designed by students of the institute "EC ITS".
"EC may stand for `easy` or `electric car`. It means making an electric car is not difficult as has been proven by ITS students, the minister said.
He hoped the name would become a motivator for other students to produce other creations.
Muhammad Nuh who was the former rector of the institute praised the white metallic car as fundamentally and in terms of design good.
Indonesia will host a number of international activities including an Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum meeting in Bali this year and so, it would be good if the car could be displayed at the event for guests to admire to make ITS more popular, he said.
Present ITS rector Prof Dr Triyodi Yuwono DEA admitted he was proud of the achievement that his students had made.
He expressed support to development of a domestically-made national electric car that has so far been promoted by the government.
"We support the `national electric car` development program. God willing we would have the capability to help make it a success. We also wish to prove that if they are given an opportunity young engineers could show their capabilities," he said.
ITS technical engineering lecturer and tutor Dr M Nur Yuniarto meanwhile said that this car had only been developed on a research scale since 2011.
However if the government wishes to develop it on an industrial scale he was ready to help with further research.
"What is clear is that the majority of its components are made
by our students except its battery. But if it is to be developed on an industrial scale we certainly would design the battery ourselves," he said.
He said ITS students had been able to design an engine control system which has so far been used in gasoline car.
Yuniarto said it took three months to finish the car and "if the battery could be made at home the car`s components would really be one hundred percent made at home to make its price lower than its research cost which is between Rp400 million to Rp500 million.
(H-YH)
Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
Copyright © ANTARA 2013
