Environmental projects in Scotland revealed

The sport for purpose championship makes its second appearance in the UK following its Season 1 finale, the Jurassic X Prix, in Dorset. This time Extreme E will take to the former Glenmuckloch opencast coal mine site in Dumfries and Galloway for the Hydro X Prix.

Extreme E’s environmental focus in Scotland will highlight the issues Atlantic Salmon face as a result of rising water temperatures and changing rainfall patterns.

Julia Wall-Clarke, Head of Impact and Communications at Extreme E, said: “This is our first time coming to Scotland, which is super exciting as its on our back doorstep. This allows us to talk about how issues relating to climate change are not just global – they are right here.

“For the Hydro X Prix we are talking about how water plays a huge role in future renewables and heathy conservation. It was pertinent to us to find projects that impactfully tie in. The work here at the River Nith and the initiative to transform the former opencast coal mine where we are racing into a Hydro plant were both a natural fit.”

The all-electric off-road racing series will embark on a Legacy Programme to implement a multi-stage project, focused on mitigating climate change effects on local salmon stocks. Partnering with the Nith District Salmon Fishery Board, the aim is to reverse the impact of climate change through community engagement, education, and the application of science.

The Restoring of the River Nith project is an ambitious, large scale catchment-wide project that will re-meander rivers, introduce large woody structures to create diversity on the riverbed and spawning substrate for salmon, stabilise riverbanks with green-engineering, plant 200 hectares of riparian woodlands, and install 100 leaky dams to help slow the river flow and reduce erosion.

Jim Henderson, Fishery Director at Nith Catchment Fishery Trust, said: “Its great to work with Extreme E on delivery this legacy programme. The series has that perfect combination of motor racing, which grabs everyone’s attention, but then it focuses on the environmental efforts of the estate here and long term plans. It will bring motorsport to attention here in a green sustainable way and leave a green legacy for the future. 

“The Hydro X Prix will have a global audience and highlight the issue of Atlantic salmon in crisis – at the River Nith we are doing something about it, and building on that has got to be a goal that’s worth achieving.”

On 11 May, just ahead of Extreme E second double-header of Season 3, Extreme E personnel, including drivers, will kick off the Legacy Programme by assisting with tree planting and fence building to protect the banks of the River Nith and preserve the Atlantic Salmon that play a crucial role in Scotland’s biodiversity and heritage.

Water temperatures over 23 degrees Celsius begin to cause issues for salmon biology, with eggs unable to survive the heat the subpopulations within rivers will almost certainly go extinct.

Changes in rainfall is also significantly altering water levels. Lower water levels in the summer make it difficult for the salmon to swim backup stream, while higher levels in the winter encourage river bank erosion. The material that is eroded flows downstream and smothers Salmon eggs, increasing egg mortality.

From the impactful native tree planting of over a thousand trees, to using innovative technologies being implemented by Official Technology Partner Vodafone Business to monitor water quality and temperatures, Extreme E will focus on a long-term transformation of the River Nith area that will protect the Atlantic salmon stocks.

Vodafone Business collaborates with Extreme E to use the pioneering championship as a testbed for innovation and in Scotland it will be through the use of a water sensor, which will monitor temperatures, acidity levels and pollutions levels in the water which will benefit the wider legacy programme.

Amanda Jobbins, CMO and Director of Go-to-Market and Partnerships at Vodafone Business, said: “After the success of our installation of early detection forest fire sensors in Sardinia last year, we were keen to see how innovative technology can be applied to the Scottish legacy programme. The River Nith catchment area is one of the most populated and industrialised in the region. We are excited to deliver real-time water quality monitoring using our IOT sensors to support the important conservation work here.”

For centuries, the River Nith has been home to one of Scotland’s most iconic species, the Atlantic salmon. However, the number of adult salmon returning to Scottish rivers has declined steeply in recent decades.

Atlantic Salmon play a vital role in the functioning of aquatic ecosystems and represent an are indicator species. The health of salmon populations closely reflects the status of their larger marine ecosystem.

Each individual salmon returns to spawn in the river where it hatched, so rivers, such as the Nith, around the north Atlantic are home to distinct subpopulations of this salmon. If the Atlantic Salmon cannot return to their spawning ground, due to tempertaute changes or the effects of erosion, this disrupts the life cycle.

Tree planting along the riverbanks will help stabilise the ground, as the roots hold onto the soil, to minimise erosion and cast shade over the rivers cooling the water temperature. Fencing the area is vital in keeping sheep out of the area to allow these trees to grow, protected from heavy grazers required in upland areas.

The importance of renewable energy will form a key part of the educational side of this Legacy Programme. Coal has been mined for decades within the Nith catchment and it is only in the last two years that the final opencast coal mine closed.

These mines have had an impact on water quality within the Nith catchment but they are now being replaced by green energy sources such as wind power and hydro.

This transition is represented within the race-site of Extreme E’s Hydro X Prix, with the Glenmuckloch Hydro Project marking a fantastic example of the move away from carbon intensive practices towards renewable energy.

The project, located at the disused opencast coal mine near Kirkconnal, Scotland, will see the construction of a co-located 1,600 MWh capacity plant and a 33.6 MC wind farm. Once constructed, the plant will have a 1,600 MWh storage capacity which can be delivered at a rate of 210 MW per hour providing 8 hours of storage capacity. Utilising two 105 MW reversible hydro-turbines, the site will store power during periods of excess energy supply and release stored energy at times of peak demand.

The racing action and updates on the Legacy Programme, will be best viewed live on STV and ITV, in the UK, over both Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 May to enable the best views. Outside of the UK, please visit here for broadcaster details.

Extreme E:

Simra Gulzar, Communications Supervisor
E: media@extreme-e.com / T:+44 7552 858229

Josh Bell, MPA Creative:     
E: jb@mpacreative.com  / T: +44 7557 102540

Diego Bustos, BE Mass Media (Latin America -including Brazil-, US Hispanics, Spain, Portugal)
E: diego.bustos@bemassmedia.com / +569-8829-9138 or +1-660-847-4645

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Extreme E:

Now heading into its third season, Extreme E is a radical off-road racing series, founded by the same team behind Formula E, which showcases electric SUVs and futuristic technologies in some of the world’s most remote and challenging environments.

This five-event global voyage utilises its sporting platform for the purpose of promoting electrification, environment and equality. The series’ goal is to highlight the impact of climate change in some of the world’s most endangered environments, promote the adoption of electric vehicles to pave the way for a lower carbon future, and provide a world-first gender-equal motorsport platform.

The first sport to ever be built out of a social purpose, Extreme E aims to minimise environmental impact while maximising awareness, racing in places that have already been damaged or affected by climate change or human interference and taking fans deep into the heart of the most pressing issues facing our planet’s future.

Not only that, but Extreme E is also helping the car industry to develop future-facing technology using racing as a platform for road innovation, which accelerates change ten-fold.

Season 3 Calendar: 

Saudi Arabia
11-12 March 2023
Scotland
13-14 May 2023
Sardinia, Italy
08-09 July 2023
Amazon/USA
16-17 September 2023
Chile
02-03 December 2023

About NEOM:
NEOM is an accelerator of human progress and a vision of what a New Future might look like. It is a region in northwest Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea being built from the ground up as a living laboratory – a place where entrepreneurship will chart the course for this New Future. It will be a destination and a home for people who dream big and want to be part of building a new model for exceptional livability, creating thriving businesses and reinventing environmental conservation.

NEOM will include hyperconnected, cognitive towns and cities, ports and enterprise zones, research centers, sports and entertainment venues and tourist destinations. As a hub for innovation, entrepreneurs, business leaders and companies will come to research, incubate and commercialize new technologies and enterprises in groundbreaking ways. Residents of NEOM will embody an international ethos and embrace a culture of exploration, risk-taking and diversity.

For further information email media@neom.com or visit www.neom.comand www.neom.com/en-us/newsroom

About ENOWA:
ENOWA is a world-class energy, water and hydrogen company founded in NEOM, Saudi Arabia. ENOWA produces and delivers clean and sustainable resources for industrial and commercial applications using a customer-centric smart and connected system, designed to be circular and takes advantage of NEOM's optimal solar and wind energy profile. ENOWA benefits from NEOM's greenfield site, which has no legacy infrastructure, to advance Energy, Water, and Hydrogen innovation.

ENOWA will act as a catalyst and incubator for developing new, sustainable energy and water businesses while creating a robust economic sector regionally. Through its commitment to renewable energy and efficient water management, ENOWA seeks to become a global reference for industry leaders and setting a benchmark for sustainable economic circular systems around the world.

For more information, please visit: enowa.neom.com

About Continental Tires: Founding Partner and Official Tire Partner
Continental develops pioneering technologies and services for sustainable and connected mobility of people and their goods. Founded in 1871, the technology company offers safe, efficient, intelligent, and affordable solutions for vehicles, machines, traffic and transportation.

The tyres business area has 24 production and development locations worldwide. Continental is one of the leading tyre manufacturers with more than 56,000 employees and offers a broad product range for passenger cars, commercial and special-purpose vehicles as well as two-wheelers. Through continuous investment in research and development, Continental makes a major contribution to safe, cost effective and ecologically efficient mobility. The portfolio of the tyres business area includes services for the tyre trade and fleet applications, as well as digital management systems for tyres.

Continental has developed a new high-performance tyre for Extreme E Season 2, redesigned to include the use of more sustainable materials. Each of the 30 tyres that Continental has supplied to all ten Extreme E teams now contains recycled polyester made from approximately 60 PET bottles.  In total, around a third of each second-generation CrossContact Extreme E tyre consists of recycled and renewable raw materials.

About Kaizen Clean Energy: Official Clean Energy Technology Provider
Kaizen Clean Energy (KCE), a manufacturer of hydrogen generators, is developing integrated solutions for electric vehicle (EV) charging, hydrogen fuelling, and distributed power for the grid and critical assets.

KCE offers its mobile microgrid to customers through an Energy as a Service contract, which eliminates large capital expenses and provides customers with the flexibility to scale with energy needs over time.

Kaizen Clean Energy will support ENOWA - NEOM’s energy, water, and hydrogen subsidiary and Green Hydrogen Power Partner to Extreme E - in delivering a pioneering hydrogen microgrid solution to the championship.

Find out more on: www.kaizencleanenergy.com.

About Zenith: Official Timekeeper and Founding Partner
Zenith exists to inspire individuals to pursue their dreams and make them come true – against all odds. Since its establishment in 1865, Zenith became the first watch manufacture in the modern sense of the term, and its watches have accompanied extraordinary figures that dreamt big and strived to achieve the impossible – from Louis Blériot’s history-making flight across the English Channel to Felix Baumgartner’s record-setting stratospheric free-fall jump. Zenith is also highlighting visionary and trailblazing women – past and present – by celebrating their accomplishments and creating in 2020 its first-ever collection dedicated entirely to them, Defy Midnight.

With innovation as its guiding star, Zenith features exceptional in-house developed and manufactured movements in all its watches. Since the creation of the El Primero in 1969, the world’s first automatic chronograph calibre, Zenith has gone on to master fractions of the second with the Chronomaster Sport and its 1/10th of a second precision and the DEFY 21 with a precision of 1/100th of a second.

About Allianz: Founding Partner and Official Insurance Partner
The Allianz Group is one of the world's leading insurers and asset managers with more than 100 million private and corporate customers in more than 70 countries. Allianz customers benefit from a broad range of personal and corporate insurance services, ranging from property, life and health insurance to assistance services to credit insurance and global business insurance. Allianz is one of the world’s largest investors, managing around 790 billion euros on behalf of its insurance customers. Furthermore, our asset managers PIMCO and Allianz Global Investors manage 1.7 trillion euros of third-party assets.

About Vodafone Business: Official Technology and Communication Partner
With expertise in connectivity, global scale and the leading IoT platform, Vodafone Business is a leading technology communications company helping organisations succeed in a digital world and keeping society connected. Vodafone’s purpose is to connect for a better future, enabling an inclusive and sustainable digital society, and many of its solutions have sustainability and inclusivity embedded.

Unique in its scale as the largest pan-European and African technology communications company, Vodafone transforms the way we live and work through its innovation, technology, connectivity, platforms, products and services. Vodafone operates mobile and fixed networks in 21 countries, and partners with mobile networks in 52 more.  As of 31 December 2021, they had over 300m mobile customers, more than 28m fixed broadband customers and over 22m TV customers.

This collaboration will see Vodafone Business leading innovations and capabilities such as 5G, MPN, IOT and MEC, integrated into Extreme E’s global operations and will include full involvement in the purpose- driven elements of the series, with special prominence on Extreme E’s Legacy Programmes and the Science Laboratory on board the St Helena.Through its IOT solutions, Vodafone Business is helping sustainability efforts, including agriculture, forestation and decarbonisation of energy grids.

Find out more on http://www.Vodafone.com/business  and follow Vodafone on its social media channels:

Twitter: @VodafoneGroup
LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/company/vodafone

About ALLCOT: Extreme E’s Official Environmental Credit Supplier
ALLCOT provides innovative project development, carbon markets, and sustainability advisory services since 2009.ALLCOT’s unique approach is based on using Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, its linkage to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), non-market approaches, and other market mechanisms.

ALLCOT aims to lead and accelerate the global transition towards a climate-neutral society by 2050. ALLCOT provides knowledge and expertise to implement climate change intervention initiatives and carbon projects that rely on nature-based and technology-based approaches.

ALLCOT supports firms and public bodies in developing their own emission reduction initiatives by providing consulting services for various carbon quantification standards (CDM, VCS, GS), as well as for various sectors (forestry, waste, renewable energy, transportation, sports). The entire carbon credit value chain is encompassed by these consulting services created under the Paris agreement.

Find out more: www.allcot.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/allcot/

About CBMM: Founding Supplier
CBMM | Niobium is a founding supplier of Extreme E and the Championship’s official Niobium Technology Supplier and Chassis Technology Supplier.

Critical to the automotive sector, niobium produces stronger, lighter and more sustainable cars with better energy efficiency. Its technologies are already widely applied in different areas, including light-weighting, safety, emissions reduction and electronics that will help lead to a sustainable sector transformation. Key applications of niobium in the Mobility sector include chassis, brakes and exhaust systems, drivetrains, batteries and EV charging stations and any number of ancillary components. Its qualities mean materials can be made lighter, stronger, more robust and more reliable – all while being more sustainable than other materials. 

CBMM offers technical innovation to customers around the globe through a team of over 2,000 highly trained, dedicated professionals providing cutting-edge niobium products and technology to over 400 clients in around 40 countries.

About Neat Burger: Official Plant-based Partner
Neat Burger is one of the world’s fastest growing plant-based sustainable burger chains, backed by key investors Formula 1 Champion and X44 Extreme E team owner, Lewis Hamilton, and actor and environmentalist, Leonardo DiCaprio.

Established in 2019, Neat Burger has achieved not only a loyal fanbase but industry recognition too, having won for a second year running the UK’s Best Vegan Restaurant of the Year at the Deliveroo Restaurant Awards and it was nominated for the 2021 GQ Food & Drink Sustainability Award. Most recently, the brand was awarded PETA’s inaugural Company of the Year Award for its game changing approach to plant-based diets, encouraging people to eat delicious, protein-packed plant-based meals.

As part of its mission to create a sustainable future, Neat Burger is working with Eden Reforestation Projects on its large scale reforestation initiatives. In 2021, Neat Burger funded the planting of over one million mangrove trees in Madagascar.

About EY: Official Innovation Partner
EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, strategy, transaction and consulting services. The insights and quality services they deliver help build trust and confidence in capital markets and in economies the world over. EY develops outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, they play a critical role in building a better working world for their people, for their clients and for their communities.

EY originally joined the Championship to help Extreme E achieve its commitment of minimizing the overall footprint whilst creating a positive legacy. In collaborating with Extreme E, EY has become a vital part of creating an Environment Impact Assessment framework which further drives the championship in the direction of positive change. Whilst Extreme E strives to race without leaving a trace, the framework provided by EY has allowed the championship to minimize its environmental impact across each race location. Both prior and post-racing impact assessments have allowed Extreme E to strategically plan their actions within these areas.

About INTERprotección: Official Insurance Broker
INTERprotección is composed of a group of Mexican insurance, reinsurance and surety bond brokerage companies. With global presence and recognition, INTERprotección has more than 40 years of experience in management and comprehensive risk consulting in the Mexican market. Its business model is focused on bringing the client to the forefront and offering them the best service through innovative and disruptive products, more recently with its new brand inter.mx,  its insurance digital platform that is transforming the insurtech game.

About LuisaViaRoma: Official Fashion Partner
Defined by the Financial Times as “a haven for directional fashion,” LUISAVIAROMA.COM is the top online luxury fashion destination with 5,000,000 visitors per month and worldwide shipping. With each new season, the website presents the collections of more than 600 established designers and young emerging talents.

About Enel X Way: Official Smart Charging Partner
Enel X Way is the Enel Group's new global business line entirely dedicated to electric mobility. Currently, Enel X Way manages approximately 320,000 charging points, both directly and through interoperability agreements in place worldwide1. As a global platform for e-mobility, the company is focused on developing flexible charging technologies and solutions to improve the customer experience by supporting the electrification of transport for consumers, businesses, cities and public administrations.

Find out more on https://enelxway.it/en/home  and follow Enel X Way on its social media channels:

LinkedIn: Enel X Way
Twitter: @enelxway
Instagram: @enelxway 
Facebook: @enelxway

¹ Public and private charging points, including points of interoperability.