Enel To Power Formula E
Enel has teamed up with the FIA Formula E Championship after announcing an agreement to become the championship’s official power partner and will promote the advancement of the championship’s power technology infrastructure.
Enel will work with Formula E to optimise its clean energy generation, distribution and management, showcasing its advanced energy solutions. The partnership gets the green light at the upcoming Berlin ePrix, which takes place on 21st May, and will run through the following two seasons, with the possibility to extend the agreement beyond the 2017/18 season.
Following the signing of the partnership agreement, the entire Formula E operations will become carbon neutral. Consequently, the Berlin ePrix becomes the first-ever carbon neutral motor race. Currently Formula E generates around 30,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year.
Enel is also designing a fully digitised energy mini-grid for Formula E, using the company’s smart metering technology to monitor power usage and give fans the chance to interact with an advanced energy system in real time. In the current season, Enel will gradually deploy its smart meters and energy management system, harvesting data on energy usage for each team and across the event at every race.
A transportable mini-grid will eventually ensure that the championship’s races continue to place no extra strain on any existing electricity grid. Enel will also provide its LED lighting technology for areas around each circuit, as well as setting up its own charging columns for fans arriving at each ePrix in their own electric vehicles.
By the 2017/18 season, Formula E will be ready to deploy a combination of solar panels and glycerine-fed generators connected to a highly innovative storage system that will distribute energy at the event whenever needed. Enel will also look at installing solar panels in other areas at each venue.
Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag said: “We are delighted to welcome Enel as the Official Power Partner of Formula E. The solutions that they will put in place to allow all of our events to be carbon neutral reinforces our belief that business, sport and entertainment can be run in a fully sustainable way. This is a very exciting new venture and I look forward to witnessing the developments in sustainable power delivery that comes as a result of this partnership.”
Francesco Starace, CEO and general manager of the Enel Group, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with the Formula E team to lend our expertise in accelerating the digitisation of their energy management infrastructure and powering them through our renewable energy generation technologies. Enel and Formula E are natural partners, as we both embrace the exciting opportunities in electric mobility, smart cities and the clean energy revolution. We are now joining forces to continue with our pioneering work in the field of technological innovation for the vehicles of the future.”
It was also announced by Formula E that BMW i, the sub-brand of German car manufacturer BMW, will be the title sponsor of the Berlin Formula E Championship.
Image: Getty Images
