The FIA Formula E Championship joined forces with Enel to offset the emissions of its inaugural race in New York earlier this month, making it the first-ever zero-emission event in the championship’s history.
Ahead of the event, Alejandro Agag, Founder & CEO of Formula E, was joined by Chairman of Enel Patrizia Grieco, CEO of Enel Francesco Starace, and Ken Allen, CEO of DHL Express, at the New York Stock Exchange to ring the closing bell (pictured).
The group participated in the closing bell ceremony and posed for photos on the balcony above the trading floors on Wall Street, along with some of the stars of the FIA Formula E Championship – the first-ever Formula E champion and NextEV NIO driver Nelson Piquet Jr, and Berlin ePrix race winner Felix Rosenqvist for Mahindra Racing.
Enel – Official Power Partner of Formula E – is contributing to limit the emissions associated with staging and powering Formula E events through its smart energy solutions. In addition to innovative clean energy generation, storage and management solutions – Enel will entirely offset the emissions of the event in New York through green certificates from its portfolio of renewable energy plants, such as the Enel Green Power Stipa Nayaa 74 MW wind farm in Mexico. The wind turbines at Stipa Nayaa prevent the emission of over 133,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, which is the equivalent of taking 26,000 cars off the road.
Formula E also works in collaboration with the FIA and DHL – Official Founding and Logistics Partner – to comprise a calendar which requires reduced air freight transportation to each venue. DHL is a frontrunner in environmentally sustainable logistics, announcing earlier this year its commitment to zero-emissions operations by the year 2050.
The equipment for the race in New York – including all 40 fully-electric Formula E cars, batteries and spare parts – was safely delivered to the USA by DHL leveraging its ocean freight expertise, which produces 100-times less CO2 emissions than transporting the same cargo via air.
“It was an honour to be invited to join the closing bell ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange,” explained Alejandro Agag, founder & CEO of Formula E. “With the continued support of Enel, as well as DHL, Formula E isn’t just making history with the first-ever race in New York – but the first zero-emission event in the history of the series. Both Enel and DHL share the same common vision and goal to make Formula E carbon neutral by 2020 – the future is electric.”
“We are proud to play a part in such an historic event today at the NYSE,” added Francesco Starace, CEO and general manager of Enel. “Enel and Formula E are natural partners, as we both embrace the exciting opportunities in electric mobility, smart cities and the clean energy revolution. Just as Formula E further pushes the boundaries of technology race after race, we at Enel strive every day for a greater penetration of electricity in society and for its full decarbonisation.”
