Glossary

The language of the fleet, defined.

Short, clear definitions for the regulatory and financial terms GCC fleets face.

Asateel: Asateel is Abu Dhabi's commercial-vehicle tracking mandate, administered by the Integrated Transport Centre (ITC). In-scope fleets fit approved tracking that reports to the ITC platform; non-fitment or non-reporting can carry fines and renewal blocks.
Cost allocation: Cost allocation is the method of attributing a fleet's costs (fuel, salary, insurance, depreciation, maintenance) to individual trucks, customers, projects or sites, by km, hour, trip or a fixed rule, so true profit can be computed at each level.
Darb: Darb is Abu Dhabi's road toll system. Vehicles passing its toll gates are charged AED 4 per crossing during toll hours, Monday to Saturday 7:00-9:00 am and 3:00-7:00 pm, and travel free outside those windows, on Sundays and on official holidays. Daily and monthly caps for private vehicles were removed on 1 September 2025.
Geofence: A geofence is a virtual boundary drawn on a map, around a site, plant, quarry or customer gate, that a telematics system uses to log when a vehicle enters or leaves, turning raw GPS into trips, site time and billing evidence.
Idling: Idling is running a vehicle's engine while the vehicle is stationary. US Department of Energy and Argonne National Laboratory figures, which are US data rather than GCC measurements, put heavy-duty truck idling at about 0.8 gallon of fuel per hour, roughly 3.0 litres per hour, within a published range of 0.6 to 1.5 gallons per hour.
Istimara: The Istimara (استمارة) is Saudi Arabia's vehicle registration card. Every vehicle a fleet runs in the Kingdom needs a valid one; renewal is generally tied to insurance and periodic inspection, and an expired card exposes the operator to fines and stopped trucks.
IVMS: IVMS (In-Vehicle Monitoring System) is the certified hardware and driver-behaviour standard that Aramco and ADNOC require for contractor vehicles entering their operational sites, enforcing safety and HSE standards.
Mulkiya: The Mulkiya (ملكية) is the UAE vehicle ownership and registration card. Every commercial vehicle must carry a valid one; renewal typically requires passing inspection and holding insurance, and an expired Mulkiya means fines and a truck that cannot legally work.
OBU (on-board unit): An OBU, or on-board unit, is the tracking device installed in a commercial vehicle that reports position and status to a fleet or regulatory platform. Under Abu Dhabi's Asateel mandate, in-scope vehicles must carry an OBU supplied by a company on the official approved OBU supplier list, which carried 29 suppliers at its 21 April 2026 status date.
Overload fine: An overload fine is the penalty for running a truck above its permitted axle load or gross vehicle weight (GVW). For tipper and bulk fleets it is a per-trip risk that can erase a load's margin; amounts vary by country; verify with the regulator.
Profit per vehicle: Profit per vehicle is a single truck's revenue minus its fully-allocated cost (fuel, driver, insurance, depreciation, maintenance). It is the metric that shows which trucks earn and which lose, distinct from utilisation, which only shows how busy a truck is.
Salik: Salik is Dubai's electronic toll system, operated by Salik Company PJSC as the emirate's exclusive toll gate operator under a 49-year RTA concession. Since 31 January 2025 crossings are priced per trip at AED 6 in peak hours, AED 4 off-peak and AED 0 past midnight; before that the fare was a flat AED 4.
SecurePath: SecurePath is Dubai's SIRA-operated tracking platform, described by SIRA as a real-time, web-based GPS tracking and fleet management solution used to monitor and track vehicles. Vehicles in regulated categories such as rental cars, desert safari operations, cash transit and hazardous-materials transport report to it through SIRA-approved providers.
WASL: WASL is Saudi Arabia's vehicle and operator registration platform under the Transport General Authority, linking commercial operators, vehicles, drivers and approved tracking. An operating card on WASL authorises a transport activity.