KUALA LUMPUR — The Bio-Energy Team from the Ha Noi University of Technology has won the second prize in the ethanol category at the 2012 Asian Shell Eco-Marathon in Kuala Lumpur, losing the top prize in the category to the Luk Jao Mae Khlong Prapa Team from Thailand.

The competition drew 1,000 students from 18 countries and territories in Asia and the Middle East who were challenged to design, build and test ultra energy-efficient vehicles.

"We continue to be impressed each year by how the students in this region are constantly outdoing themselves by coming up with clever, innovative designs which aim to break new ground in energy efficiency," said Shell Eco-Marathon Asia project manager Mavis Kuek.

The winners were the student teams that were able to travel the furthest using the least amount of energy.

The teams competed for a total of US$42,000 in prize money in 28 fuel categories.

The Bio-Energy Team was able to achieve a score of 455km/litre, up from 192km/litre at the 2010 event.

Other Vietnamese teams which participated in the event but failed to win prizes in any categories included the BK-ICE Team from the HCM City University of Technology, and AT-01 and AT-02 teams from the HCM City University of Industry.