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Porsche sustainable synthetic e-fuels

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Porsche’s sustainable synthetic e-fuels a step nearer
Pilot e-fuels plant in Chile officially opens 130k litres a year capacity; 55m by mid-decade



Synthetic fuels are perhaps the holy grail for petrolheads; a glimmer of hope that low-carbon e-fuels could postpone the abandonment of the combustion engine. And this pipedream has taken a step towards reality this week, with the opening of Porsche’s new e-fuels factory in Chile.
That’s Porsche’s procurement boss Barbara Frenkel and R&D chief Michael Steiner (above) filling up a Porsche 911 with synthetic fuel produced at the Haru Oni pilot plant in Punta Arenas.
‘The potential of e-fuels is huge,’ said Steiner. ‘There are currently more than 1.3 billion vehicles with combustion engines worldwide. Many of these will be on the roads for decades to come, and e-fuels offer the owners of existing cars a nearly carbon-neutral alternative.’
Porsche chairman Oliver Blume on synthetic e-fuels
Synthetic e-fuel: ‘nearly CO2-neutral’ petrol
Porsche describes this wonder fuel thus: ‘e-fuels made from water and carbon dioxide using wind energy enable the nearly CO2-neutral operation of petrol engines.’
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Stuttgart has a 12.5% stake in HIF Global, the group behind the Chilean facility (above) with a capacity of 130,000 litres a year in this pilot phase. However, once full production is reached, Porsche expects to be producing 55 million litres annually by mid-decade, and 550m litres by 2027.
So don’t expect to be filling up with synthetic fuel just yet. For now, it’s bound to Porsche’s Mobil 1 Supercup race series and for the pumps at Porsche Experience Centres.
Porsche e-fuels: the background
Synthetic fuel – called eFuel by Porsche – is created by splitting water into oxygen and green hydrogen, then combining CO2 with the green hydrogen to produce synthetic methanol, which is then converted into e-fuel, which can be used in regular combustion engines.
The project is not just about cars, though, as e-fuel can also be used in aviation and shipping. And as part of the creation of the synthetic fuel, e-methanol is produced, which can replace raw materials of fossil origin in the chemical industry. HIF is exploring possibilities for producing sustainable fuels in Australia and the USA, using solar power rather than the wind energy that drives the Chile scheme.

R&D expert Steiner said: ‘There is more and more willingness to cross from fossil to renewable. We see ourselves as pioneers in e-fuels and want to drive the technology. This is one building block in our clear, overall sustainability strategy.’
Porsche’s e-fuel had performed well in tests, Steiner added. ‘We did a lot of testing on test benches and in cars. No issues at all, even in a GT3 RS on the racetrack. This is really fine.’
The fuel should be suitable for use in any engine currently using fossil fuel, either as e-fuel or a blend of fossil and synthetic. But the quantities that will be produced amount to little more than a drop in the ocean.
Steiner said full-electric vehicles remained Porsche’s main focus: ‘By 2030, 80% of all vehicles we sell will be fully electric.’
Synthetic fuels: a stepping-stone energy source
It will most likely be used first in Porsche Supercup and other race series, and at Porsche Experience Centres. ‘Will we be able to offer it to everyone in the world? No, not in every location.’ And aside from any technical issues, there are many legislative and regulatory challenges lying in wait for anyone thinking this means the internal-combustion engine will still be produced in the 2030s and beyond.
Potentially Porsche eFuel could be sold to Formula 1 as it moves to greener fuel. But Dr Steiner would not comment on whether this meant Porsche would itself be returning to Formula 1.
‘We are really happy that F1 decided to start using eFuel in 2026. This is a huge step in the right direction in getting emissions down, for the whole F1 business, not just on track.’
Porsche invests €1bn in decarbonisation
Porsche used its annual press conference in March 2021 to double down on its commitment to sustainability, while also making clear it believes there’s much more to CO2 reduction than electrification alone. It’s convinced combustion engines running on synthetic fuels also have a role to play, in motorsport, in road cars and in classics, too.
‘The problem is not the internal combustion engine itself, it’s the fuel you burn,’ explains Dr Michael Steiner, Porsche’s R&D boss. ‘We have to do a lot of work in order to come down on CO2 emissions, definitely, and we are totally committed to this. But the problem is not the engine itself.
‘We would like to show that e-fuels are a feasible technology with certain volumes – there are a lot of questions, and people who are not convinced that this will work. So, we have to show them. The decision is not one to be taken by our side alone, of course, but we will do all we can to see if this is a solution for highly emotional cars, for racing, and also for on road cars. Our job, at least as research and development, is to show what’s technically possible. The next step is to convince people that there might be not the need to ban everything.’
As things stand, the UK government has moved to ban the sale of new cars powered by combustion engines alone from 2030.

Synthetic fuels are used by engines in the conventional way, creating heat, power and emissions, but their production involves processes that are carbon-neutral or even capable of off-setting the CO2 released during combustion. Audi’s been working on such fuels for a number of years, and Porsche has announced it too is stepping up its R&D spend on the technology.
CEO Oliver Blume: ‘Our gasoline engines are consistently being developed further. They are becoming more and more efficient with every new generation and we see e-fuels as a way of having an almost neutral type of fuel. Together with our partners, for instance Siemens, we are pushing the industrialisation of e-fuels with an investment of around €20 million in a pilot plant to prepare this technology for the large scale.
‘We think there could be applications for e-fuels in motorsports, in vehicle testing, when first filling our new vehicles, in our plants in Porsche experience centres. With e-fuels, Porsche classic cars and hybrid models could drive in the future almost neutrally, and current sports cars like the 911 that allow for fully electric due to their concepts could drive almost CO2-neutrally in the future thanks to e-fuels.’
Blume has previously suggested that the 911 will be the last Porsche to electrify, if at all, given how fundamental the rear-mounted flat-six engine is to the timeless sports car. Might e-fuels ride to the 911’s rescue?


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