The motorsport championship Dubai International Baja will get into the record books this weekend as the first FIA World Cup cross-country event to be run on solar power.
Following the new partnership between the Emirates Motorsports Organization (EMSO) and Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), the rally will be based at DEWA’s Innovation Centre located at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.
“DEWA supports the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 that was launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and aims to diversify the energy mix and to provide 75 percent of Dubai’s total power capacity from clean energy sources,” said HE Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA.
The partnership between EMSO and the International Automobile Federation is in line with the ongoing efforts to boost Dubai’s position as an international pioneer in bringing up the clean and renewable energy sector, and in finding alternative solutions to conventional energy.
Mohammed Ben Sulayem VP for Sports – FIA President – EMSO
“The use of this facility means that electrical power provided to Rally HQ and the Service Park to run the event is generated from sustainable solar power. None of this would have been possible without the support of the Government of Dubai for our sport, and its leadership in sustainability. We’re setting an important trend, and hope other motorsport events in the region and overseas will follow.”
Taking place under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, the Dubai International Baja will be held from 18 to 20 February at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world based on the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model.
The EMSO’s new partnership with DEWA is a notable move for the national motorsport authority (ASN) as the organization is committed to the sustainable development of the sport. In 2015, it became only the third ASN in the world, and first in the Middle East, to receive the highest official recognition available for sustainable development initiatives in line with environmental goals of the FIA, motor sport’s governing body.
Since then, the EMSO has widened its efforts to reduce waste, promote recycling and using recycled materials and resources more efficiently to minimize consumption at events like the F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
