Formula E founder Agag’s latest gig is electric powerboat racing

LONDON — Formulation E and Serious E founder Alejandro Agag released the world’s initial electric powered powerboat racing championship on Friday, presenting E1 as a ideal fit for his other electric powered sequence.

The sequence aims for a 2022 debut and characteristics one-pilot RaceBird boats with hydrofoil technological know-how and in a position to race at speeds of up to sixty knots — equal to 111 kph or 69 mph — on seas and lakes.

The system is remaining made with SailGP, a high-tech sailing sequence operate by five-time America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts, who will be a technological know-how and technical companion.

Agag informed Reuters in advance of a presentation at the Monaco Yacht Club that the time was ideal for a sequence endorsing electric powered boats.

“If there is not a marketplace, we will create a marketplace for this due to the fact it is anything that is important,” said the Spaniard, who will be non-govt chairman with previous F1 engineer Rodi Basso as main govt.

“To electrify (transport on) the sea or the lakes or the rivers I think is important due to the fact it is a purely natural move in battling air pollution in the drinking water, which is a really major problem.

“At the conclude of the working day there is a marketplace, due to the fact there is a large marketplace from local climate change.”

Formulation E is a city-primarily based all-electric powered sequence that is about to start its seventh time and has FIA globe championship standing.

Serious E debuts upcoming 12 months, highlighting the outcomes of local climate change by racing in remote and severe environments together with the Brazilian rain forest and Greenland. Six times Formulation One particular globe winner Lewis Hamilton is moving into a workforce.

The sequence uses a refurbished previous mail ship as a floating paddock and that would also dwelling the powerboats at races outside Europe.

“We have a exceptional possibility to be a hybrid just about, if you like, with Serious E and Formulation E,” said Agag of the E1 powerboat sequence which will have up to twelve groups and be sanctioned by the sport’s governing UIM.

He said the powerboats could race together with Serious E in locations these kinds of as Greenland or the Amazon but also in towns like Geneva or London devoid of acquiring to construct any infrastructure.

Agag said Formulation E had always desired to race in Tokyo but confronted as well lots of city challenges. An electric powered powerboat race in the Bay of Tokyo would defeat that.

“I think this is heading to combine the most effective of the two. We are heading to be in towns around the globe and we are heading to be in extremely remote locations highlighting local climate change,” he said.

Basso, a previous motorsport director at McLaren Used Technologies and a keen sailor, informed Reuters E1 would be a pure electric powered sequence motivated by sailing.

“The most effective instant when you are on a sailing boat is when you change off the motor and you go only with the sails due to the fact there is the silence and immersion with mother nature,” he said.

Basso said the goal was to examination the boat in Greenland at the conclude of August upcoming 12 months.

New Zealander Coutts observed common floor concerning electric powered powerboating and sailing.

“We are run by mother nature, and SailGP and E1 share the innate drive and feeling of intent to be primary innovators of sustainable technological know-how,” he said in a assertion.