ABB FIA Formula E World Championship Race to be Held in Canada

October 1, 2021

This international racing series for fully electric single-seater race cars takes place annually at different city-street tracks around the globe. For 2022, organizers have selected Vancouver to host the event in recognition of its status as one of the most sustainability-conscious cities in the world.

Éric Deschênes, Country Managing Director and Head of Electrification Business for ABB in Canada, is especially thrilled to welcome the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship to the market: “The return of Formula E to Canada, this time in our country’s greenest city, is a testament to the progress being made towards a more sustainable world for Canadians. The metropolitan setting of Vancouver offers the ideal platform to highlight ABB’s technologies for e-mobility, smart cities, sustainability, and energy solutions, amplified by the appeal of the championship. It is an opportunity for technological development and represents ABB and Formula E’s shared vision for the future of a cleaner, more sustainable world for all.”

ABB’s partnership with Formula E began in January 2018, bringing together the global technology leader with the world’s first fully electric international motorsport series. For ABB, the Championship serves as a competitive platform to test and develop e-mobility-relevant electrification and digitalization technologies, helping refine the design and functionality of electric vehicle components and accelerate the transition and uptake of e-mobility on a global scale. The return of the series to Canada complements ABB Canada’s work for more than a century, innovating and investing to provide leading electrification and automation technologies to Canadian industry.

To further reinforce ABB’s commitment to driving e-mobility progress forwards in Canada, and to coincide with the return of the championship to a country so linked to our own e-mobility development, ABB Canada will be donating up to a total of $50,000 in electrical chargers to the city of Vancouver and will work closely with the city to determine which chargers are supplied based on Vancouver’s current needs.

Canadian E-Fest, more than just a race weekend 

In July 2022, Formula E cars will be taking to the streets of Vancouver during Canadian E-Fest. Organized by the OSS Group, the event aims to bring awareness of environmental leadership to the world. The event is expected to top $80 million in economic value and create approximately 3,000 jobs. Comprised of 4 pillars, the Canadian E-Fest will include the E-Prix, an electric single-seater car race as part of the 2022 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship; E-Live, a 2-night concert series; E-Volve, a 2-day conference staged by C2 International; and E-Sports, a tournament gathering virtual gamers across Canada.

ABB in the e-mobility market

As a major player in electrification, robotics, motion, automation and digital technologies, ABB has a duty to raise the profile of sustainable development in transport, electrification, cities, and factories – with e-mobility a key element of this. ABB entered the e-mobility market back in 2010, and today has sold more than 460,000 electric vehicle chargers across 88 markets; over 21,000 DC fast chargers and 440,000 AC chargers, including those sold through Chargedot. In Canada, there are more than 400 DC fast chargers installed, over 40 of which are installed in the province of British-Columbia.

The Government of B.C.’s Climate Leadership Plan, that aims to reduce net annual greenhouse gas emissions by up to 25 million tonnes below current forecasts by 2050, includes making electric vehicles (EVs) more affordable and buildings more energy efficient. With that, BC Hydro, a customer of ABB Canada, has expanded it’s EV network of over 70 fast charging stations across B.C., including 26 ABB Terra 53’s and DC Wallboxes for their provincial network. Similarly, ABB Canada has supplied 14 Terra 53’s to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure in northern British-Columbia to reduce carbon emissions.