From Formula E to the E1 Series: everything is ready for the first electric motorboat world championship

The expected result is therefore to become the world avant-garde of what gravitates around the creation of events, means of water transport and projects dedicated to the rebirth of marine ecosystems in urban areas. Technology and science, at the service of the rebirth of coastal areas through the biology and sustainability of maritime mobility, mediated by a sports car container in charge of becoming the non plus ultra of these contents at first glance. «It is clear that the marine industry has a gap to make up compared to everything that has developed on the road. By simply transferring Formula E technology we have accelerated innovation in powertrain technologies by at least fifteen years while building a championship that is fun to follow and attracts many fans. In this way we think we can cultivate the culture of electrification and the possibility of having fun on the water even with sustainable propulsion”. These are some of the premises (and promises) explained by the engineer Rodi Basso. Co-founder, CEO and main mind of E1, who has been able to combine his considerable expertise accumulated in over two decades of key roles in companies such as Magneti Marelli, Ferrari and McLaren Applied Technology with the entrepreneurship of a sports giant such as Alejandro Agag, founder of Formula E and Extreme E, and inspired by a young and emerging Norwegian designer, Sophie Horne. Now, about three years after the first meeting of the three key characters, the boat responsible for giving life to this adventure is being validated and perfected in view of the first races expected at the end of the year.

The Italian share

CEO, offices, suppliers and many workers – in addition to CEO Rodi Basso, there is no shortage of expertise at the top also for the suppliers of the English organization: Re-Fraschini di Legnano, which produced all the appendices for Luna Rossa, assists Victory Marine ( Pisa) by Brunello Acampora for the construction of the hull and foils. Tecnoelettra of Vignola for all the high-tech support of the specialists of SeaBird Technologies, the English company led by Horne who created the RaceBird. And in the internal staff, which is very international, despite being highly dense in Americans and English, the percentage of Italians is still significant, not only in the suppliers, but also in the role of technicians and designers. Just as Italy plays an important role in logistics: in 2023, in fact, tests will continue on Lake Maggiore and new offices will be inaugurated in Venice, which will also be the location in 2024 for the first Italian stage of the series. Still near Lake Maggiore, the production of the 14 planned examples (for racing and reserve) will be moved to Sesto Calende. Also Italian is one of the first members, Team Venezia, under the leadership of Eugenio Razelli, former CEO and general manager of Magneti Marelli.

Last tests on Lake Maggiore

As mentioned, the innovative RaceBird made its return to Lake Maggiore a few weeks ago with the aim of intensively resuming the tests necessary for the development of the vehicle. «Completing the tests on the lake is essential for fine-tuning and solving each problem, because the absence of sea waves makes it easier to identify their origin. Once the final refinements have been completed, we will be able to move on to blur, in Monte Carlo», explains Casiraghi with satisfaction.

The paradigm shift: events and projects for cities

What are the challenges to be successful and not remain a niche? «For the first few years, our business model will be based on the belief that we belong to the city events industry. We have expressions of interest for the first season from Venice, Hamburg and Monaco in Europe, as well as major cities in the Middle East. In my dreams I also hope to get to New York, Miami, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, the Maldives and the Bahamas. This identification, different from other events that offer a strictly sporting product, is a necessary choice, also in order not to depend mainly on the audience: we are more oriented towards the needs of the host localities. Therefore our revenues include important fees, currently in the order of 4-5 million euros, just as we also ask the teams to invest in licenses for a team, which will remain limited in number. In this regard, we have Formula E as a reference model, which in eight years has seen this value appreciate eight times».

But the most innovative component is «the development of ESG projects that we develop thanks to our Chief Scientific Officer, the luminary Carlos M. Duarte, with whom we not only deal with the sustainability of the boat, but also with the recovery of the coasts chosen by our local partners. With the occasion, we aim not only to improve the state of health of the environment, but also to give work and educate the host populations in a lasting way», explains Basso.