Saudi Arabia will host the first Hydrogen World cup event for motor racing Extreme H

The pioneering hydrogen off road racing series Extreme H is set to debut in Saudi Arabia as a World Cup event next month, after organizers scrapped plans for a multi-round championship.

Alejandro Agag, the founder of the series, said that an agreement had been reached between it and the International Automobile Federation.

Plans from the past had a five round calendar that began in Saudi Arabia in April last year, with races also taking place in Britain, Germany and Italy, as well as in the United States.

Agag said that the delays were due to logistical problems. "It has been very difficult, especially on the technology side. Nobody has ever really completed hydrogen races -- full hydrogen races."

"Nobody's ever done it before. Some attempts have been made to run some hydrogen vehicles but not in a pure race. Those attempts did not end up being successful.

"We wanted to do something special, spectacular and everything was ready for it."

Extreme H replaces Extreme E which promoted electric vehicles and sustainability by racing SUVs through harsh terrain already damaged by the environment.

Hydrogen will be produced using renewable energy to split water. Remote locations will no longer have access to this fuel.

Extreme E will be the last event to take place in Saudi Arabia, before Extreme H takes over the next weekend. Both events will feature rally-style races and driver-to-driver head-to-heads.

Qiddiya near Riyadh could be an alternative to the Extreme E race that has been held in Al-Ula and Jeddah.

Agag said, "There will be an Hydrogen World cup every year." Then, it could expand to include more events - two or three in total in the region.

Saudi Investment Fund PIF is expected to be the principal partner.

Agag said, "Saudi Arabia, especially NEOM has large green hydrogen projects." "I believe Saudi, Aramco, and all Saudi companies are, let's just say, betting heavily on hydrogen," said Agag.

It's going be a real hub of hydrogen technology, not just in cars -- charging it, transporting, and storing it.

Extreme E launched in 2021, with identical SUVs in each lineup and both male and female drivers, has travelled as far as Senegal and Greenland.

Formula One champions Jenn Button, Nico Rosberg, and Lewis Hamilton are among the owners of these teams. (Reporting and editing by Christian Radnedge in Amsterdam. Alan Baldwin is the reporter).

(source: Reuters)