Extreme E And Cop 26 Give Prince William Electric Racing Test Drive
Extreme E teamed up with COP26 – the global climate event set to be held in Glasgow later this year – to give Prince William a masterclass in electric racing as well as a test drive in an Extreme E car.
Knockhill Racing Circuit in Scotland played host to the Duke of Cambridge, who rode in an Extreme E car, as well as being given a lesson in the series’ electrification, environment and equality background. He was also given a look at Extreme E’s hydrogen fuel cell – created in collaboration with British-based AFC Energy – which charges its electric race fleet using zero-emission energy.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are visiting projects across Scotland which aim to ‘positively turn the dial on the climate emergency’ during Lord High Commissioner’s Week.
William was hosted by Extreme E CEO and Founder Alejandro Agag, Adam Bond, CEO of AFC Energy, and members of two of Extreme E’s British teams, George Imafidon, a Junior Engineer on Lewis Hamilton’s X44 team, and driver Catie Munnings, who races for the Andretti United team.
The AFC Energy fuel cell innovation is one of a selection of technologies used by Extreme E this year, and fits with the spirit of The Earthshot Prize, a global environmental prize founded by Prince William in October 2020, which aims to discover and scale the best solutions to ‘help repair our planet’ over the next 10 years.
Inspired by US President Kennedy’s ‘moonshot’ – which saw a man land on the moon within ten years of the declaration – The Earthshot Prize aims to protect and restore nature; clean our air; revive our oceans; build a waste-free world; and fix our climate. The prize will be awarded to five winners – one per Earthshot goal – every year until 2030.
