As the world's first all-electric single-seater racing series, we're in the business of promoting the adoption of electric mobility all over the world - it's just what we do.
With that in mind, the ABB FIA Formula E Championship
and the Moroccan Ministry of Youth and Sports together formed the Electric Sports Coalition (ESC), in the wake of the 2016 FIA Formula E Marrakesh E-Prix. Tasked with raising the awareness of electric sports and mobility, the coalition meets annually to report on the progress made towards C02 emission reductions and electric mobility developments. With the 2018 Marrakesh E-Prix marking the one year anniversary of the coalition, we caught up with representatives from key signatories such as, BMW, Michelin, AMEE (Moroccan agency for energy efficiency), IRESEN (research Institute in solar and renewable energies), Formula E's very own Founder and CEO Alejandro Agag as well as hearing from Moroccan rookie driver Michael Benyahia.
Starting off the meeting, Said Mouline, CEO of the Moroccan agency for energy efficiency (AMEE) commented on the spirit of this coalition."Sharing best practices and lessons learned and also inspire more people to embrace the potential of sustainable technology.” He added it is not only a matter of improving air quality and reducing C02 emissions, but also about creating jobs within the green economy.
"We are a generation of possessors," says Rachid El Mrabet PHD of the IRESEN (research Institute in solar and renewable energies). "For the next generation, we need to move to being sharers." With research suggesting that cars are parked up to 95 per cent of the time in urban areas, car sharing is becoming more popular as a way of getting around the city. As it stands, China and the United States are the two largest markets for shared mobility, but other nations are catching up fast.
Despite the change in people's buying and ownership attitudes, the main reason to go electric is environmental. "The biggest reason why the world's biggest countries like China and India are moving to electric is because of the pollution levels in cities," says Said Mouline of the Moroccan agency for energy efficiency. "We have Formula E here in Marrakesh, so people can see that electric cars can reach these kinds of speeds and this level of performance."
"Having Formula E in Marocco - my home country - is fantastic, says Venturi Formula E rookie driver Michael Benyahia. "The country is really rapidly evolving towards electric now. We're developing lots of solar panels and wind farms, which are close to the ocean, so we're really developing how we go about generating electricity. With all that, having Formula E here is really helpful for the country and the environment in Marocco."
But, of course, all those electric cars need powering - something countries and cities are preparing for, in order to match the surge in all-electric car sales. "Here in Morrocco, we're looking into a programme to install charging points from Tangier to Algeria," says El Mrabet.
In Formula E, the cars are charged with electricity made by generators powered by a fuel that is virtually emission-free – glycerine. “What we do is provide an electric power and distribution system in a very controlled way so that the cars can be charged in an hour in a very safe and reliable way that is fair to all the teams,” says Paul Day, the CEO of Aquafuel.
Having featured in the series since the inaugural season in 2014, Aquafuel technology has moved on a great deal. "When we started Aquafuel, it was about 45 times the price of a diesel generator but now the price is almost the same, so Aquafuel becomes the best alternative to a diesel generator," says Formula E Founder and CEO Alejandro Agag. "With that in mind, maybe this is something we [the coalition] could promote as a fuel source in Africa."
With over 10 car manufacturers already committed to Formula E, which takes place in 10 cities, over five continents, the move towards electric is a growing global movement. Care to join us?