What if we told you that an entire INDYCAR racing team could run carbon neutral for less than the price of a spare racing tire or a new PS5?
Preserving a clean and healthy environment is certainly worth more than a new right rear or a state of the art video game console, but it doesn’t have to be more expensive.
That’s why in early 2023 we chose fellow American Biogas Council member, Sapphire Gas Solutions to become our official renewable natural gas provider for an INDYCAR “first” a year in the making. In a special way, we completed INDYCAR’s first ever carbon neutral race weekend at Sapphire’s home track, Texas Motor Speedway. Sapphire’s creative solution became the latest in a long line of extraordinary INDYCAR innovations going all the way back to the rear view mirror, but what happened in Texas was not a one off achievement. We repeated it 3 more times during the 2023 season at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, World Wide Technology Raceway, and Portland International Raceway.
This spectacular feat was achieved by powering the team’s mission-critical auxiliary services at each of the four events with a solution powered by RNG gas produced at a landfill which had a carbon intensity of 37 compared to the regularly used diesel fuel which has a carbon intensity of 100. In fact, the total solution was so successful that Sapphire Gas and Steinbrenner Racing avoided over 13 metric tons of CO2 emissions throughout the four events, at a price of $137 per metric ton or about $450 per weekend.
Steinbrenner Racing is incredibly proud of what we accomplished this year in not only reaching but overachieving with our long-held sustainability goals. “Clean energy is something that has always been incredibly important to me. From the start it has been a priority for us to find new and creative ways to bring clean energy into INDYCAR.” Explained team owner George Steinbrenner.
According to Co-Owner Julia Steinbrenner, this year’s accomplishments have also created more conversations about environmental efforts in a such a carbon intense sport such as racing. Following another successful weekend she noted “Being able to offset and neutralize the carbon emissions for the team’s entire race weekend was not only an impressive undertaking, it also opened the door for conversation and education around clean energy in motorsports and beyond”.
2023 was a great way to show the racing community what is possible and that it does not take extreme measures to achieve environmental goals or make a historic impact. Sapphire Gas Solutions is ready to design fully scalable, carbon free solutions to power race teams and support infrastructure across the country in 2024.
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