National broadband innovator Internode is taking its sponsorship of this week’s Global Green Challenge seriously by putting founder and managing director Simon Hackett on the road for the 3000km odyssey.

Internode is a major partner of the Global Green Challenge event for alternative energy vehicles, a week-long marathon road run from Darwin to Adelaide, starting this Saturday, October 24.

Simon is already in Darwin with a support team from Internode preparing to take part in the Global Green Challenge with his $160,000 Tesla Roadster, the world’s only fully electric production sports car.

With supercar performance of 0-100km per hour in 3.9 seconds, the Tesla has a driving range of nearly 400km on a full charge of the 6831 lithium ion cells that can be recharged in as little as three hours.

When Simon steers his Tesla out of Darwin at noon this Saturday, he’s on a mission to prove that electric cars are the future of motoring. “I’m a fan of electric vehicles from way back in the mid 80s and so I want to get people to see the Tesla to know that electric vehicles are for real,” he said.

“The Tesla Roadster is built as a paradigm-buster. It’s Silicon Valley’s answer to the golf cart image of the electric vehicle – which is to bust it completely. Its cost of $160,000 sounds expensive until you realise that it outperforms a $500,000 Ferrari, so, in its league, it’s actually dramatically cheap. Tesla has made this car to change people’s perceptions.”

Adelaide-based Internode is the largest privately owned broadband company in Australia. Renowned for its reputation of technical excellence and friendly customer service, the company operates a first-tier telecommunications network throughout Australia with dedicated international links to the US and Asia.

Synergies between Internode and the Global Green Challenge are obvious as both organisations are committed to innovation and embracing environmentally responsible technologies. This sponsorship is just the latest demonstration of Internode’s corporate environmental responsibility.

Last year, Internode achieved CO2-free status after undertaking a major greenhouse gas emission audit and purchasing the required offset carbon credits. Since September last year, Internode has used 100 per cent GreenPower™, generated from sources such as wind and solar, throughout its operations nationally.

Internode’s Tesla Roadster will lead a field of 54 alternative energy vehicles – 37 solar cars and 17 production vehicles – travelling 3000km on the Stuart Highway from Darwin to Adelaide in the Global Green Challenge. This evolution of the World Solar Challenge is the world's leading, cross-continental showcase of the latest advances in hybrid, electric, solar, low emission and alternative energy vehicles.

Simon said he would put the Tesla through its paces in the six-stage journey, covering distances from 300km to 700km per day. “We’re simulating the recharging infrastructure by putting a generator on the back of a truck and sending that out ahead of the car to be at the recharge point we want,” he said.

“The idea is to demonstrate that if you have the appropriate recharging infrastructure on the highway system, you can drive at normal highway speeds and treat it just like any other car. We’re asking that if the recharging infrastructure is available, can the car cut it? Can you drive one from Darwin to Adelaide and make it? My aim is to prove that point - and this is the perfect event for it. This event is about proving whether you can do that with alternative energy cars.”

Simon is writing about his experiences driving the Tesla Roadster across Australia in the Global Green Challenge in Internode’s new blog at http://blog.internode.on.net.

About Internode www.internode.on.net

Internode is a first tier IP carrier committed to using broadband technology to redefine the national telecommunications environment. The Australian-owned company is a trailblazer that delivers broadband services to individuals and businesses throughout Australia.

About Simon Hackett www.simonhackett.com

Simon Hackett is one of Australia’s best-known technology entrepreneurs. As managing director of the national broadband trailblazer Internode, Simon leads Australia’s largest privately owned broadband company. Established in 1991, Internode has more than 150,000 broadband customers and about 400 employees, a carrier-grade international telecommunications network and a range of value-added broadband services.

Simon leads Internode with a unique combination of technical insight and entrepreneurial energy. While renowned for its customer-friendly service, Internode constantly pushes back the boundaries of broadband innovation. In 2005, Internode was the first Australian company to launch commercial ADSL2+ broadband. In 2007, the company pioneered ADSL2+ Annex M services. In July 2008, Internode became the first national ISP to offer its customers direct access to Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) as part of its standard service.

In August 2008, Simon’s achievements were acknowledged with the Telecommunications Ambassador award from the Communications Alliance. This annual award recognises an outstanding individual who has shown strong leadership and made a significant and visible contribution to the Australian communications industry. Simon won the Bulletin-Microsoft Smart 100 IT & Communications Award in 2004 and was an SA winner in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards in 2005. Simon is also a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society.

Internode PR for media assistance: Impress Media Australia www.impress.com.au

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