Solar Impulse has proved that clean, electric transport is capable of great things in the air. Now, Solar Impulse Main Partner ABB is embarking an its own electric vehicle adventure: a symbolic road trip from Spain to Germany to show that what Solar Impulse is doing in the air, ABB is doing on the ground, in the field of the integration of renewables, energy efficiency and electric transport.
Transportation is responsible for around a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions across the European Union, and exhaust fumes continue to send thick smog and fine particle pollution into the atmosphere of some of the world’s major cities. But it doesn’t have to be like this: transportation could be part of the solution to climate change, rather than a significant part of the problem.
For example, Solar Impulse, currently in Europe, has flown across two of the world’s great oceans, the Pacific and the Atlantic, without using a drop of fuel. Now ABB, with its innovation and technology alliance with Solar Impulse, is setting out to show how pioneering technology is making a difference on the ground, particularly in the fields of energy efficiency, electric transport and the integration of renewables into the electricity grid.
A team from ABB Germany is driving an electric car across 6 countries (Spain, France, Monaco, Italy, Switzerland and Germany), recharging with ABB chargers, carefully calculating their energy usage. Along the way, they will stop at key ABB sites that are contributing to a better world and a cleaner future.
Stops include:
• ABB Zaragoza factory in Spain, which makes power transformers for solar power plants,
• The ABB Marseille site in France, which showcases the many products and services that are making the marine industry more efficient
• The ABB fast charger factory In Northern Italy the road trip team will visit the ABB fast charger factory, supplying charging networks across Europe and beyond
• The new Gotthard tunnel in Switzerland, highlighting the company’s long association with the Swiss rail industry and its contribution to technical progress and sustainable mobility,
Follow the EV road trip:
To follow the road trip on social media follow ABB on Twitter at @abbgroupnews or #EVroadtrip
You can also find an interactive map tracking the progress of the road trip on our ABB/ Solar Impulse microsite www.abb.com/betterworld.
Source: abb.com
