Andretti signs up for electric racing series

"It's an honour for Andretti Autosport to have been selected as one of the 10 founding Formula E teams for the inaugural season," Andretti, a former F1 racer and son of 1978 world champion Mario, said in a statement after a presentation in Indianapolis.

"I look forward to further exploring the series and helping build the future of open-wheel racing across the world."

Andretti Autosport are the third team to commit to the championship after Britain's Drayson Racing - who recently broke the world electric land speed record - and China Racing.

The FIA-sanctioned series will involve 10 teams and 20 drivers competing in races in 10 city centres around the world. There are two U.S. cities on the provisional schedule - Los Angeles and Miami.

Andretti will use a Spark-Renault Formula E car in their first season.

The car is built by French-based company Spark Racing Technology who are part of a consortium that includes the McLaren and Williams Formula One teams as technology partners .

Andretti Autosport are a leading IndyCar team with four championships in that series as well as winning the Indianapolis 500 in 2005 and 2007.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Alison Wildey)