Powering Off the Grid: Inside NASCAR's Revolutionary Military-Base Microgrid

Hosting a racing event on an active military installation comes with a unique set of logistical challenges. But when NASCAR headed to San Diego for the Anduril 250 at Naval Air Station North Island, the sport faced an unprecedented mandate: under no circumstances could the event compromise the base's military readiness.

That meant NASCAR had to find a way to power its entire racing infrastructure—from pit road and broadcast compounds to fan zones and team garages—without drawing a single watt of electricity from the base's local grid.

To pull off this massive engineering feat, the sanctioning body teamed up with technical partner ABB to engineer a massive, self-contained network of mobile microgrids.

The Coronado Island Power Solution

"A microgrid is a self-contained power system," explained Chris Shigas, ABB’s vice president of strategic partnerships. "That means the power generation, the power transmission, and the power distribution are all handled internally. When you don't have access to utilities and you're off the grid, you have to build your own."

According to Shigas, the scale of the operation was staggering. The only larger self-contained microgrid on Coronado Island is the United States Navy's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.

To achieve this, the team deployed 30 Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) paired with traditional diesel generators. Rather than running the loud, carbon-emitting generators constantly, the hybrid setup operated with incredible efficiency: the generators ran for just two hours a day to charge the batteries, and the BESS units quietly powered the entire event for the remaining 22 hours each day.

From Street Courses to Military Bases

This plug-and-play energy solution didn't appear overnight. It is the evolution of technology first developed and trialed during NASCAR’s street races in Downtown Chicago from 2023 to 2025.

CJ Tobin, NASCAR’s managing director of vehicle systems, compares the sport's modern logistics to moving a "roving city" into a new market. With this hybrid technology, that city is now fully mobile and self-sufficient.

"With these hybrid generators and bringing remote race controls to the track, we can carry this setup wherever we would like," Tobin said. "It took an entire industry to be able to do this—kudos to everyone at ABB, Suburban Propane, and NASCAR R&D for putting our heads together."

Green Goals Without Sacrificing the Show

The project fits directly under the umbrella of the "NASCAR Impact" department, which is spearheading the sport's ambitious goal to reach net-zero operating emissions by 2035. This initiative includes transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy at events, using low-carbon sustainable bioethanol fuels, and drastically reducing trackside waste.

Eric Nyquist, NASCAR’s Chief Impact Officer, emphasizes that these green initiatives will not dilute the on-track product that fans love.

"2035 is an ambitious goal, but we fully intend to get it done in a way that won't have one iota of an impact on what the fans observe on the track," Nyquist explained. "The combustion engines, the sound, the racing—none of that needs to change. What we are doing is optimizing the other parts of our operations. Replacing continuously running diesel generators with smart electric power is a win-win across the board."

Bringing Fans Behind the Scenes

At the track, fans were treated to a firsthand look at how the system worked. ABB showcased its NASCAR Grid Control display—a massive 20-by-8-by-18-foot glass pod featuring 11 live video feeds and real-time data dashboards tracking the microgrid's energy usage.

Designed to mimic the remote race control center in Concord, North Carolina, the display gave spectators a look at live telemetry and advanced race-official analytics. NASCAR hopes to use this level of transparency to educate fans on how race-day officiating decisions are made.

"This is the first time we’ve ever given fans access to see exactly what we're looking at," Tobin added. "We want to do this again with even more transparency at other tracks. We want to show the data that supports our officiating, and we think fans genuinely want to see that behind-the-scenes decision-making process."