Formula E sits at the top of the sports and sustainability food chain. This year, the all-electric motorsport championship has again been recognized for its work in the area, scoring well across all ESG markers in various independent, third-party sustainability indices. Formula E has long been a pioneer in using technology to fight climate change and has a stated goal of bringing its technology from the track to the road, while educating the public about sustainability issues. With the championship reaching the midpoint of its tenth season, I sat down with Formula E’s VP, Sustainability, Julia Pallé to discuss the past, present and future of the championship’s sustainability journey.
Tokyo ePrix
Speaking in Tokyo, on the eve of the first-ever Tokyo ePrix, Pallé was excited and noted that the experience and welcome in Japan had been wonderful. The race sold out within minutes of the tickets going on sale, so despite heavy rains in the buildup, expectations were high in advance of the race at Tokyo Big Sight.
Marrying electric motorsport with the Japanese sports market and Japan’s culture of environmental care seemed a natural fit to Pallé, who reminded me that “a core value in Japanese culture is to live in harmony with your environment.” She noted that Japanese culture has successfully merged tradition and technology, and noted that part of Formula E’s promising partnership with the city of Tokyo is its perfect alignment with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s strong net-zero emission strategy.
With the two parties sharing the same principles, Pallé saw the race, and the introduction of electric motorsport into the Japanese market, as “a great way to push adoption through sport.” Not only could the race provide an exciting spectacle for Japanese citizens, but Formula E’s presence in the country would reinforce the notion that electric vehicles and great electrification is readily available.
This progress through technology, and specifically electrification, is at the core of Formula E and its VP of Sustainability’s thinking. As climate change continues to pose increasing risks to sports and vital aspects of daily life, Pallé continues to bet on technology as the solution to humanity’s greatest challenge. In no uncertain terms, Pallé said, “We believe that technology is the answer to any kind of challenges, especially when it comes to climate challenges. We believe that it is through technology that we will be able to make it to the challenge of climate change.”
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Fast-Charging Technology
Formula E has made great strides introducing innovative electric vehicle (EV) technology over the past ten years. The competition is far past the days when cars needed to be replaced mid-race due to limited battery capacity. Pallé expects this progress to continue.
As Formula E looks towards Gen4, the words on fans and executives’ lips are ‘fast-charging technology.’ The technology was supposed to be introduced during this season, but has faced numerous delays, and according to reports in Motorsport, CEO Jeff Dodds has now admitted the fast-charging technology won’t be ready until next season.
Despite its delay, Formula E’s fast-charging technology remains a potential game changer in Pallé’s eyes. With battery range a problem of the past, Pallé believes that any remaining consumer doubts about EV’s stem from recharging and infrastructure issues. Pallé says that “people struggle or have a fear of adopting an electric vehicle if they need to drive outside of the city on longer distances,” often asking “Am I going to find a charger? Is it going to take me hours to recharge my battery?” Fast-charging could solve these issues, giving everyday commuters, and family vacationers the peace of mind that along the way they could stop and recharge their cars in a matter of minutes, potentially in less time than it takes to fill a traditional combustion engine with gasoline.
The fast-charging technology will recharge Formula E cars for 30 seconds at 600 kW, replenishing 4 kWh to their batteries. The new technology — which according to Autoweek will be named Attack Charge — will introduce pit stops to electric motorsport, adding another element of excitement and bringing the television product closer to Formula 1. For general consumers, the technology makes the idea of an EV a possibility for long-distance travel.
The technology transfer from track to road will have to wait a few months more as Pallé says the championships engineers are still “finessing the technology.” Although she says that is because they want it to be “efficient and add something from a sporting perspective,” adding “we never compromise,” and that “the idea is to make sure everything we do and develop in the championship can be used on the road.”
Saudi PIF Investment
As the championship’s popularity continues to grow — CEO Dodds says it now has nearly 400 million fans worldwide — investment into the championship has become more enticing. In late January, Formula E, Extreme E and E1 all received investment from an unlikely source, the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The PIF, which says it has over $900 billion in assets under management across thirteen sectors, has recently taken to investing in sports as part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s economic diversification strategy, Vision 2030. Last year the fund acquired 75% of four major Saudi Pro League soccer clubs, it also established LIV Golf, eventually forcing a merger with the PGA and just recently presented a $2 billion bid to merge the ATP and the WTA, shocking the tennis world.
The Kingdom has an established presence in motorsport, with annual Formula 1 (Jeddah) and Formula E (Diriyah) races and several Saudi companies sponsoring prominent teams such as NEOM McLaren in Formula E and Aston Martin in F1. However, the investment into Formula E, Extreme E and E1 increases the seriousness of its commitment to electric motorsport, which leaves many in the sport and climate community skeptical.
Pallé remains firm on the issue, noting that Saudi Arabia is committed to Vision 2030 and its strong agenda on sustainability, which she says is “backed by action.” Moreover, Pallé is known for being someone who prefers everyone have a seat at the table. In Japan she told me “When it comes to Saudi Arabia, I’ve always said that it’s more important, given the scale of the challenge that we have in front of us, to have everyone around the table including those that were part of the problem, because for sure they can be part of the solution. Given the knowledge they have and the resources they have.”
Formula E’s VP, Sustainability went on to say that the PIF and Formula E have shared values and that they both show a willingness to work together and challenge things. She was adamant that the PIF was “not only talking the talk, but walking the talk,” and said Saudi Arabia could become the next powerhouse in solar energy. Furthermore, she noted that Formula E has actually worked hand-in-hand with the Saudi government to change the status quo, referencing the first-ever mixed gender concert in the Kingdom, and the first-ever female rookie driver test, both of which Formula E has a hand in planning.
While it is true that Saudi Arabia is loosening social restrictions and trying to diversify its economy through sports and tourism, it is also true that it remains an authoritarian regime that is doubling down on oil and gas. Just days before Julia and I talked, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin H. Nasser spoke at the annual CERAWeek conference, calling on policymakers to “abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas, and instead invest in them adequately, reflecting realistic demand assumptions.” He added that there remains “significant demand growth potential” for the oil and gas market.
Given these statements, Aramco, which is nearly 98% owned by the Saudi Government and the PIF stands in direct opposition to global emissions reduction targets, and Formula E’s objectives of mass electrification of the automobile industry and the education of the general populous regarding climate change and environmental sustainability issues.
Perhaps the PIF investment and having their executives at the table will allow Formula E to nudge them in the direction of decarbonization. However, Formula E must remain vigilant of any potential use of its reputation in campaigns to paint the PIF and its other investments and activities in a more positive light.
Curbing Emissions and Sports for Purpose
In its tenth anniversary as a competition Formula E continues to curb emissions through smart decision making and technology. At the beginning of the season, the championship moved its logistics hub from the U.K. to Valencia on the eastern coast of Spain. The decision was made because it allowed for increased sea freight and road transport, decreasing the use of aviation wherever necessary. Initial data from Formula E and DHL shows that thanks to this move the championship will save more than 1300 tons of CO2 in transport and logistics. Moreover, it keeps the championship on track for it’s SBTi-aligned objective of a 5% reduction in CO2 emissions each year.
Julia described Formula E’s continuous effort to reduce CO2 emissions as a balancing act for a championship that is trying to grow. Ever the engineer, for her it is all about efficiency. Julia notes that renewables are used at every single event, biofuels are used for road freight, the championship is looking into the use of sustainable aviation fuel (the benefits of which remain up for debate), and most importantly, she says Formula E is “always really pushing ourselves to make the calendar more efficient in terms of geographies,” using a clustered approach.
In Tokyo, she insisted that the championship is “always making sure each generation of cars would be basically braking some of the barriers to EV mass adoption.” Her excitement about the possibilities for the championship was evident and she noted that Formula E “will use Gen4 as a technological lever to improve everything revolving around the battery, sustainability, end of life and CO2 emissions,” adding that the Gen4 technology was quite advanced, although she remained tight lipped about what it will look like.
With Earth Day around the corner, there is no better time to find reasons and solutions that make people optimistic about the future. Formula E embodies the way technology can be harnessed to help solve some of the climate challenges humans face. Pallé will share her hard-won insight about the power of sport to elevate topics around environmental adoption in the lead up to Earth Day appearing on several podcasts at EarthFest. She says “it is powerful to showcase that you don’t have to be dull when talking about climate change,” adding that it helps to show “it’s actually really cool and easy to live a sustainable lifestyle.”
