- Porsche aims to expand synthetic fuel production
- Porsche R&D chief believes synthetic fuels will play a big role in reducing emissions
- Ferrari is also looking to synthetic fuels; Toyota, Mazda and Subaru are investigating whether e-fuels can sustain ICE operations
Porsche is confident that synthetic “e-fuel” will replaces a large amount of regular gasoline use by the end of the decade, research and development director Michael Steiner said in a recent interview with Car.
In 2022, Porsche opened a synthetic fuel pilot plant in Chile produces a petrol alternative by combining hydrogen with carbon dioxide captured from the air, with the whole process powered by renewable energy. Steiner told Autocar that the plant will serve as a “model” for how Synthetic fuel production increased.
Haru Oni synthetic fuel pilot plant in Punta Arenas, Chile
Because while Porsche initially envisioned synthetic fuel primarily for specialized applications like racing and classic cars, Steiner also believes it will play a big role in reduce emissions from conventional vehiclesalong with electrification.
“We see this as a great complementary strategy to electric mobility, and we think we can actually help protect the environment in a faster way, because we can do something for existing cars,” Steiner said, noting that while electric vehicle sales continue to fluctuate, new internal combustion cars are still being sold and will continue to be in use for some time.
2024 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup race car to be electronically fueled
Porsche says capturing CO2 from the air effectively eliminates emissions from burning synthetic fuels in internal combustion engines, but a 2021 study from environmental group Transport & Environment estimates that synthetic fuels cause a lot of pollution like regular gasoline. Synthetic fuels also Requires similar infrastructure as fossil fuels to produce and distribute, making their use less efficient than EV charging.
It’s not yet clear whether synthetic fuels can compete on price with conventional fossil fuels, although that may not be a concern for Porsche or Ferrari, which are also researching synthetic fuels as a Potential savior for its high-end supercarsHowever, synthetic fuels are also among the technologies being jointly researched by Toyota, Subaru and Mazda ARRIVE keep the internal combustion engine running—perhaps in more modest means.
