LONG BEACH >> Formula E, the new “green” racing alternative to Formula One, is coming to Long Beach next year, officials announced Thursday.

The series, the first fully electric motorsport, will race on part of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach track on April 4, 2015.

Mayor Bob Foster said at a morning press conference that Long Beach shows it is passionate about sustainable transportation with its bicycle infrastructure, walkability initiatives and electrification of goods movement at the city’s port.

“We are also a city that holds a special place in international motorsport,” said Foster, who owns a Chevrolet Volt. “Long Beach and Formula E are perfect partners to launch this next generation of auto racing.”

FIA Formula E Championship CEO Alejandro Agag said one of the goals of the series is changing the perception of electric vehicles as underpowered and not something to be used for daily transportation.

“By showing these cars going fast, racing, we think we can change the minds of a lot of people about electric cars,” Agag said.

A second goal is to spur innovation in the electric vehicles field. Agag pointed out that other racing leagues such as Formula One and IndyCar developed fuel injection, carbon disc brakes and other technology now used in road cars.

A track plan for the Formula E Long Beach ePrix shows the race using seven turns of the 11-turn track for the Grand Prix of Long Beach, scheduled for its 41st running from April 17-19, 2015.

The event will be free to attend, and Agag urged parents to bring their children to introduce them to electric vehicles.

“If we can convince those kids that when they buy a car, the first cars they buy, it’s an electric car, I think we will be achieving something very, very important,” said Agag.

Long Beach Grand Prix head Jim Michaelian called Formula E’s use of his race’s infrastrucutre a “win-win.”

“We look forward to it,” said Michaelian. “I think it’s a neat concept and it says a lot about where some aspects of motor racing is going.”

The allure of the pioneering series has attracted investors such as actor Leonardo DiCaprio and Virgin’s Sir Richard Branson.

Its inaugural season is set to debut in Beijing in September and end in London the following June. The 10-team, 10-race competition will travel the world and race on street circuits in cities such as Buenos Aires, Miami, Monte Carlo and Berlin.

The car for the series, designed by Spark Racing Technology, can top 150 mph using a chassis manufactured by Dallara, an electric power unit by McLaren, a battery by Williams Grand Prix Engineering and tires by Michelin designed to last an entire race event. Qualcomm will provide wireless charging for the vehicles.

Races are expected to last about 50 minutes. Because batteries only last 25 minutes, drivers will swap cars in place of traditional pit stops.

Formula E driver and former Formula One driver Lucas di Grassi said the racecars he drove in the latter series can accelerate from 0-60 mph in 1.9 seconds.

A Formula E car can hit the same mark in 2.5 seconds, but di Grassi said the performance can’t be compared because the fully electric series’ concept is different from other leagues.

“We want to be something else,” di Grassi said. “We want to be parallel to those competitors.”

The driver also explained that a combustion engine loses about 70 percent of the energy produced by its fuel in the form of heat. In an electric power unit, 95 percent of the energy is applied to the car’s movement.

“In the long term future, there is no competition,” di Grassi said. “Everything will be electric.”

Contact Eric Bradley 562-499-1254.