The AvD calls for a national strategy for synthetic fuels

The Automobile Club of Germany (AvD) calls on the federal government to develop a national strategy for the development and market launch of climate-neutral synthetic fuels (syn-fuels) that go beyond their use in air and sea shipping. Rail, and in particular road transport, must also be included.

The “politically propagated and almost planned economy-driven electrification of the transport system” not only contradicts the basic features of the free market economy, but has also long been apparent that the already increasing demand for electricity will not be able to be covered with regenerative energy sources alone for many years to come. The resulting carbon dioxide emissions would simply be shifted. And there are no signs of a nationwide charging network in the coming years either.

The internationally recognized expert in drive technologies and former Chief Technology Officer at Schaeffler AG, Prof. Dr. Ing. Peter Gutzmer, supports the AvD in its claim. Among other things, he is Chairman of the Board of the FVV association, which deals with basic research into future drive systems, and says: “If we implement our goals for reducing CO2 with e-mobility, for example by registering 15 million electric cars by 2030, then we will only achieve half of the climate protection targets set for transport, even in the current tank-to-wheel perspective. We must therefore integrate the currently existing vehicle stock with internal combustion engines. And that only works if we change the fuel. Because the fossil fuel is the problem and not the combustion engine itself.” According to the expert, this can be implemented relatively quickly. He predicts that in six to eight years large quantities of syn-fuel will be available on the global market. Not least because shipping and air traffic urgently need such fuels. “But only if we also provide syn-fuels for vehicle traffic will we be able to bring the 1.4 billion existing vehicles worldwide to CO2 neutrality quickly and inexpensively,” says Gutzmer.

According to the automobile club, Asian and Arabic countries are already working on using regenerative energies to produce synthetic fuels cost-effectively and in market-relevant quantities in the foreseeable future. (awm)