Cape Town is to host a round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, says Jaguar and e-Movement.
e-Movement is the promoter of the Cape Town race, set to follow events in Saudi Arabia and Mexico.
As the founding partner to e-Movement, Jaguar South Africa supported the bid to host the first Formula E (electric) race in Cape Town.
The event will take place in February next year.
The announcement to include Cape Town in the roster was made by the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) in Geneva, following a scheduled meeting to approve the Season 8 race calendar by Formula E Operations.
“This is a historic first for our country and Jaguar South Africa is ecstatic to have been part of the team to secure Formula E for Cape Town and South Africa,” says Jaguar Land Rover South Africa MD Richard Gouverneur.
“We are delighted and honoured to be included on the calendar after two years of bidding to make this dream a reality,” adds e-Movement chairperson Iain Banner.
e-Movement says it has been working very closely with the City of Cape Town to ensure that all the requirements can be met to stage a successful event next year.
The Cape Town round will be the first FIA World Championship single-seater race in South Africa since the 1993 South African Grand Prix.
“On a personal level, having grown up in South Africa, I’m incredibly excited to be racing in my home country with the team. For Jaguar the announcement is very welcome as South Africa is an important market,” notes Jaguar Racing team director James Barclay.
Cape Town mayor Dan Plato notes that the City of Cape Town is pleased to be chosen as one of the cities to participate in the Formula E tournament.
“The event will unlock major investment, job creation and tourism potential through identifying Cape Town as the racing destination on the African continent.
“We look forward to working toward this event. The city has the necessary infrastructure and skills to host an event of this size and we are confident that [it] will further cement Cap Town’s global reputation as the world’s leading festival and event destination.”