Showpower Global has announced its partnership with Global Citizen to power the main stage of the 2024 Global Citizen Festival in Central Park with its world-first SmartGrid synchronised battery system.
The SmartGrid battery system, designed especially for international stadium touring, music festivals and large-scale sporting events, has been developed and tested with global artists Coldplay on their current Music Of The Spheres World Tour with unprecedented success. The system uses repurposed BMW i3 EV (Electric Vehicle) batteries to store energy, can be charged with grid, solar, wind, hydrogen and generator sources while simultaneously powering any event.
The Global Citizen Festival will be the first U.S. festival to implement the SmartGrid system to power their main stage including all audio, lighting, video and stage production. In addition to its many existing sustainability efforts, the Global Citizen Festival battery-powered stage will deploy over 1.680 MWh of battery storage capacity, enabling substantial fuel and emissions savings and minimising any required run time of generators.
“During the last four years, Showpower’s collaboration with Coldplay has allowed us to continually trial the SmartGrid battery system and test our industry-first Proof of Concept in a highly pressured live environment across multiple international stadium locations,” said Paul Schurink, CEO and Sustainable Power Expert at Showpower Global. “And by doing so, we can now guarantee a 100% reliable and sustainable power solution for global touring artists, promoters and event owners who want to substantially reduce their emissions. We are here to support bold leaders and help them implement sustainable power solutions for their audiences and to guarantee the future of their businesses.”
“With the successful testing of the SmartGrid alongside our expert knowledge of designing and implementing sustainable power solutions for mega events, we can help enable a fast transition for our clients to reduce their environmental impact and improve their sustainability,” Schurink continued. “Showpower Global B.V. is proud to be part of this consortium of progressive and innovative leaders like Global Citizen, CES Power and with support from Coldplay who have the same passion and vision as we do.”
“Sustainability has been a core value of the Global Citizen Festival since its inception,” said David Beame, Global Citizen’s Vice President of Global Events & Experiences and the festival’s longtime producer. “We are consistently increasing our sustainability efforts, and this year we’re thrilled to make the switch away from relying solely on diesel generators to battery power, with the support of Coldplay, in partnership with Showpower Global B.V. and CES Power, with contributions from Equitable Earth. Batteries aren’t just for cars anymore — they can power a 60,000 person music festival, too! We hope many other festivals will make use of this important innovation to reduce their carbon emissions.”
