We Could Achieve Climate Targets Much Faster with a Multi-path Strategy

FVV Managing Director Talks About Ways to Defossilize Transport

Are battery electric drives the only way to achieve the climate targets in transportation? Or could different drive concepts be considered for sustainable mobility? And to what extent could e-fuels help to defossilize existing fleets more quickly? Many current topics will be discussed at the 12th International Engine Congress. The industrial research association FVV (“Science for a moving society”) continues to provide important impetus in this context. FVV Managing Director Martin Nitsche answers our questions in the run-up to the congress.
 

Mr. Nitsche, your studies have shown (to put it simply) that it is not the choice of climate-neutral drive technologies, but the speed of their introduction that is decisive for achieving the goal of GHG-neutral mobility. Is this transformation of mobility currently happening fast enough?

Martin Nitsche: First of all, I would like to emphasize that we are all – in politics, business and science – united by a common goal: the defossilization of mobility and the associated sustainable reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The question of whether one technology is sufficient for this or whether we should pursue several technology paths at the same time, as well as the question of whether we are currently acting quickly enough in implementing measures to achieve this goal, can undoubtedly be discussed controversially.

At the FVV, we are working on the overarching goal of defossilization in a wide variety of research projects. In view of our findings, I am convinced of the need for a multi-path strategy. This is the only way to achieve our common goal as quickly as possible.
 

What do you think is needed to increase the pace of transformation?

Martin Nitsche: I would like to address three aspects in this context. Firstly, it is technologically imperative to phase out fossil fuels as quickly as possible – this of course also includes the millions of vehicles in the existing fleets that will literally be on the roads for years to come.

Secondly, this requires greater political consideration of non-fossil fuels – but it is precisely this path that is currently still blocked by current EU legislation. It can also be observed that once political decisions have been made, they are very slow to change.

Thirdly, aspects of infrastructure should also be considered in all of these topics: Are security of supply and availability of raw materials given, what measures are still necessary for this – in relation to various technologies from electromobility to e-fuels and hydrogen?
 

What political decisions are required against this background?

Martin Nitsche: My wish would be for political guidelines to be based much more on the entire life cycle of a product and therefore on its life cycle assessment (LCA). In a complex world, simple solutions are not enough. Instead, comprehensive concepts are required that take into account economic and social factors as well as ecological necessities.

In my opinion, this requires legislation that thinks outside the box. And at the same time gives the economy the necessary entrepreneurial freedom to develop and implement new technologies.
 

What do you mean by “think outside the box”?

Martin Nitsche: One example: We cannot focus solely on the situation in Europe and the USA, but should also include mobility systems worldwide in the objective of defossilization. This includes the second and third-life continued use of vehicles. In other words, is the electrification of transportation around the world really conceivable in the foreseeable future – or are differentiated solutions not needed, also in relation to LCA?

There are also issues of robustness and social resilience. Today, liquid fossil fuels are indispensable in numerous other applications outside of the transport sector, but these are hardly taken into consideration – for example, when I think of the emergency power supply for critical infrastructures such as hospitals or data centers. Sustainable and reliable solutions are also needed for this application on the way to defossilization.
 

You have already spoken about the need for a multi-path strategy to defossilize mobility. What role could e-fuels play in this?

Martin Nitsche: The business case for e-fuels is obvious: as a drop-in fuel with existing infrastructure, their use could contribute directly to rapidly reducing emissions in existing fleets, meaning that investments made here are likely to pay off both ecologically and economically. Due to the large volumes involved, the use of e-fuels for the automotive sector (e-diesel, e-gasoline) is also a prerequisite for the economical production of synthetic fuels for other transportation applications such as aviation and shipping.
 

Critics often argue that e-fuels are inefficient and also expensive to produce. How would you counter this argument?

Martin Nitsche: First of all, I would recommend taking a life cycle view instead of just looking at efficiency. Our studies, conducted by Frontier Economics, for example, have shown that in a closed CO2 cycle, efficiency is only a question of cost, not ecology.

We are therefore delighted that the calculation model used in our fuel studies is now also to be used at European level in parallel with the instrument developed by the EU – it will be exciting to see how the two models can be mutually optimized.
 

FVV conducts pre-competitive basic research to open up new approaches for sustainable drive and energy systems. What are the current and future focal points of your work, and what role does hydrogen play in this?

Martin Nitsche: It goes without saying that hydrogen is a key topic for us, not only in pure hydrogen combustion, but also in more advanced applications and in the combination of hydrogen and nitrogen, i.e. ammonia. In terms of a multi-path strategy, we continue to aim to provide impetus with our studies. In general, it is important to keep an open mind in science and industry. The future of mobility requires a mix of technologies. To achieve this, it is necessary to take a new path without knowing from the outset where it will lead and whether it will be successful.