Sustainable aims
SailGP will take its biggest step forward in its ambition to be the most sustainable and purpose driven global sports league, with some of the most progressive technological and sustainable clean energy innovations in action at the Great Britain Sail Grand Prix in Plymouth 30 & 31 July.
31 July 2022
Advertisement
Hosted in Britain’s Ocean City, home to the UK’s first National Marine Park, Plymouth’s stunning natural amphitheatre will provide the perfect venue for the third event on SailGP’s global Season 3 calendar, as nine teams race not only on the water but for a better future powered by nature.
In partnership with Aggreko, the world-leading provider of mobile modular power, Plymouth will boast the largest solar array SailGP has ever used and will display bio-methanol fuel as an energy source at a live event within the UK for the first time in history. This will enable the entire race village to be 100 percent powered by clean energy, whilst also supplementing wider energy across the site.
Aggreko will also continue to utilize other previously seen renewable energy technologies such as Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), which will be used to power the famous Trinity Pier and Clyde Quays where SailGP’s Technical Area is located, home to its world-class athletes and cutting-edge F50 race boats.
Advertisement
The Great Britain Sail Grand Prix will be the most sustainable on-water event ever with the largest number of electric solutions integrated across the race weekend through agreements with RS Electric, Evoy and Vita, as part of SailGP’s target to power its entire on-water fleet by clean energy by 2025.
The Inspire Program – SailGP’s community, education and outreach initiative – will showcase races run 100 per cent on clean energy for the first time ever, providing a glimpse into the racecourse of the future for the hydro-foiling F50s. This includes MarkSetBot, the world’s first robotic sailing marks, and support boats fitted with electric Epropulsion engines.
DRIFT Energy will also showcase a world-first technology of a foiling yacht that produces green hydrogen on board – leaving nothing behind but oxygen. The green hydrogen, having been produced entirely by the power of the wind, could in future form a tangible part of SailGP’s event and on-water clean energy strategy.
SailGP global director of purpose and impact Fiona Morgan said: “As we’ve seen Britain shatter its record for the highest temperature ever registered this week as a direct result of climate change, now more than ever all businesses, including sports organisations, need to act.
“It’s great to be back in Plymouth and collaborating with a wide range of key partners and suppliers to find innovative solutions to minimise our impact, focusing on clean energy. These are just a few steps in our ambition to be fully powered by nature by 2025, but it’s a real showcase of how we need to work together to tackle the climate emergency and every change makes a big difference.”
Out on Plymouth Sound, Sir Ben Ainslie will make his SailGP debut on home waters at the Grand Prix, hoping to lead his Great Britain team to a victory that would break the stranglehold Tom Slingsby and his Australia SailGP Team are developing on the competition. The two-time defending champion Australia has also claimed the first two events of Season 3, defeating Ainslie and the Phil Robertson-led Canada team in both finals.
In the lead up to the event Ainslie described Plymouth Sound as a challenging but great venue. “It ticks all the boxes, it can be baking hot with a light sea breeze or pouring rain and blowing 25 knots (29 mph), you just don’t know what you’re going to get.
“But you also don’t get many opportunities to race at home at this sort of level and it’s extra special to race in front of a home crowd,” Ainslie said.
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement