(Motorsports news) As the series celebrates the end of its inaugural season, Extreme E has its attention firmly fixed on 2022 as it unveils its Season 2 calendar.
The sport for purpose championship takes place in off-road locations as part of its mission to drive awareness of climate change issues, such as global warming, melting ice caps, rising sea levels, wildfires and extreme weather, whilst promoting sustainability and the adoption of electric vehicles to help protect the planet.
Alejandro Agag, CEO and Founder of Extreme E, said: “After a spectacular opening season we are thrilled to be in a place where we can announce our Season 2 calendar.
“All of us here at Extreme E are looking forward to revisiting some of the amazing race locations from the 2021 season to see for ourselves the positive impact our electric series has had and to see what more we can bring to the communities there. We also very much hope to add South America to our list of continents, and with visits to both Chile and Uruguay planned, it is shaping up to be another exciting season.”
The third race of the campaign, set to take place in July, has the possibility that the electric off-road series will take place in either Scotland or the more familiar Senegal. With agreements on process, updates on the third slot in the Extreme E race calendar will be released soon.
The St. Helena – the former Royal Mail Ship – provides the championship’s floating centerpiece – carrying the series’ vehicles, logistics equipment and paddock infrastructure. They are also host to scientific research with its on-board laboratory which is to lower the impact of the travel logistics compared to air travel.
Head-to-head races, known as an X Prix, take place over two days, within an area less than 10km2, as the team will field a male and a female driver who can complete a lap of the race course, including a Driver Switch situated midway. Course designers have been assigned with selecting course options, which can provide the most challenging, exciting action, using already present obstacles and features with elevation changes and jumps, in order to lessen the environmental impact.
Race organisers will go thorough environmental, social and economic assessments of each location with a local third party, overseen by EY in order to follow the environment protocols, social inclusivity and fair practices. These reports have played a role in the way Extreme E operates from water consumption, waste management and lighting on-site through to land management and to make sure the series races without a trace after the X Prix has finished.
Extreme E works with local experts, governments and NGOs to implement positive legacy initiatives dependent on specific regional needs. Examples of Legacy Programmes in Season 1 have included; the funding of a turtle conservation project along the Red Sea coastline; the planting of one million mangroves with NGO TO.org and Oceanium in Senegal; cocoa agroforestry and Amazon conservation with The Nature Conservancy in Pará state, Brazil; and the creation of a climate education syllabus for over 3,500 school children across Greenland with UNICEF.
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