With music festivals around the world focusing more on meaningful sustainability initiatives, Central California's Mill Valley Music festival is set to raise the bar by deriving 100% of its power from renewable energy sources.
Taking place this weekend (May 11-12), the Mill Valley, Calif., event says this initiative will make it the first festival in the United States to be powered entirely by renewable energy. The source of this energy will be Moxion MP-75 batteries — battery powered generators that use no fuel, produce no emissions and are almost completely silent. (Last year, these Moxion batteries were included among yearThe best inventions of 2023.)
The festival, which expects 6,000-12,000 attendees per day, will use seven Moxion batteries to power the stages, VIP areas, vendors and all other power points. Another three batteries will be on site as backup. Says a Moxion representative Advertising sign that these batteries were given to the festival to serve as a proof of concept that Moxion can be shared with other live event organizers to help festivals transition from traditionally used diesel generators to clean energy sources.
Amazon and equipment rental company Sunbelt are among investors in Bay Area-based Moxion Power, whose batteries have previously been used to partially power festivals, including Reverb's Luck Reunion near Austin, BottleRock in Napa Valley and Southern California events PowerTrip, Camp FlogGnaw, Long Beach Tamale Fest, CaliVibes and Coachella. Upcoming installations are planned for the Los Angeles festivals Cruel World and Just Like Heaven.
While many festivals have experimented with using some clean energy — including battery and solar power — some event organizers are wary of relying entirely on battery-powered generators due to concerns about reliability and cost. According to a company spokesperson, Moxion does not publish retail prices as the cost of the battery varies depending on the incentives available at purchase, but they say the cost of the battery is comparable to the cost of traditionally used diesel generators when considered rental and fuel prices.
Nick Adlerhead of festivals at Goldenvoice — which produces acts like PowerTrip, CaliVibes, Camp FlogGnaw, Cruel World, Just Like Heaven and more — said Advertising sign in March when the cost of green initiatives “starts to affect the bottom line [of festivals] in a positive way, there will be a full push for all of this.”
Organized by the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce and Noise Pop Industries, the Mill Valley Music festival is in its third year and this weekend will feature artists such as Fleet Foxes, Margo Price and St. Paul & the Broken Bones.
The festival anticipates that by using Moxion batteries, it will avoid wholesale production
9,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions. (For comparison, 9,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions is roughly the equivalent of an average gas-powered passenger vehicle driven for 10,000 miles.)
“We are thrilled to be the exclusive power source for the Mill Valley Music festival this year,” says Moxion CEO and Co-Founder Paul Huelskamp. “Moxion was born right here in Mill Valley, so it's incredible to see the festival become a leader in sustainability. We hope this inspires more eco-friendliness
practices in all areas”.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/business/touring/mill-valley-music-festival-renewable-energy-moxion-battery-1235676718/
