E-Fuels could play a “limited role” for fleets in the future where electric vehicles might remain impractical, according to FleetCheck.
Several EU countries are pushing for e-fuels to be included in future car production legislation, circumventing a 2035 internal combustion engine (ICE) ban.
Peter Golding, managing director at FleetCheck, said: “The bottom line is that these fuels are very expensive and likely to remain so, while their claims to be carbon neutral are in some respects, highly questionable. They do not appears to be a serious mass market answer to the future of either CO2 emission reduction or clean air initiatives.”
He added that e-fuels might have a role to play in fleet applications where electrification looks as though it could prove problematic, at least into the medium term.
FleetCheck recently highlighted discussions that it has been having with fleets, looking at areas where replacing ICE vehicles with electric might not be practical. Examples include 4x4s used by power companies in remote areas and ambulances, both of which might be needed around-the-clock in an emergency and do not recharge quickly.
The resources required to electrify these 4x4s, ambulances and others would be considerable and e-fuels might make more sense, especially if the cost can be brought down from current levels.
Golding said: “Hopefully, we’ll see battery technology move to a point in the coming decades where electrification of these vehicles is practical but, until then, there will need to be stop-gap solutions. While e-fuels are far from perfect, they look to be a better answer in limited applications than current petrol and diesel options.
“It’s interesting that the recent House of Commons Transport Committee report highlighted the need for pragmatic solutions to low carbon travel and highlighted e-fuels as an option that could well fall into that category.”
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Matt has been an automotive journalist for eight years. As senior staff writer he is responsible for the automotive content on Fleet News and also contributes to Automotive Management. Prior to this, Matt worked in the automotive industry for 10 years.
Rosco7010 - 23/03/2023 13:28
E-Fuels are not the answer at all. They create potential local pollution even if they are zero CO2 in the balance. The better solution is hydrogen, Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicles are effectively EV's with a pollution free hydrogen battery. So they can use the same electronics, motors and regen systems of an EV. I am surprised governments internationally are not promoting hydrogen more, as at least with a gas they can generate road fuel duty, that is impossible with home charged electric vehicles. Its an open goal for future tax revenue. Unfortunately we will get a badly managed and installed road pricing system that will be more expensive and problematic from practical purposes. The UK government have no idea how to charge duty on electricity for vehicles charged at home. For an idea of the problem - For an EV doing 3 miles per KwH, and 5% vat on electric (£0.35 per KwH) this means the government collect £0.006 per mile. For a Petrol vehicle doing 40mpg they currently collect (£1.45pl which £1 is duty and vat) they collect £0.11. That is 175x the revenue per mile!