Electric or e-fuel?

As we wrote in the previous issue, «To build tomorrow, what we do today counts».
This principle can be declined as the need to create infrastructures for new technologies.
First of all, there should be a lot of electricity from renewable sources, capable of satisfying current and growing demand. In this the government is either inadequate or unwilling to pursue this goal. There are those who think that sooner or later agreements will be made again with Russia for gas and oil, and everything will be as before. This is why Italian politics advances with the handbrake on, remaining behind, even for other technological solutions such as hydrogen.

The funds allocated by the Draghi government as incentives for the columns provide for the coverage of 80% of the cost for private individuals: 1,600 euros for single houses; 8,000 for condominiums. In 2022, 21 thousand new public points were placed. The PNRR provides for 713 million to install an additional 21,000 public columns on urban and extra-urban roads (first tranche of 237 million as at 30 June 2023). Yet it is not difficult to create a network of electrical sockets, as each street light pole can be a recharging point. Let's try to make a comparison between us and the Europeans by reading the data for 2021: around 4 million electric cars with 350,000 public recharging points installed in a year. It should reach 8/10 million points in 2035 throughout Europe (EU data).

On the subject of batteries and their recycling, research is producing more and more interesting solutions for autonomy. Just one example: the new Na-S sodium/sulphur batteries with storage capacity 4 times higher than lithium, at room temperature. A form of induction charging is being developed which is already in use for public transport (city buses) via a plate placed under the charging vehicle, which is also used for private vehicles. In terms of battery recycling, we note the existence of many structures in France, Germany, Belgium, Great Britain, Finland for the recovery of lithium and cobalt in particular. Not in Italy though... Furthermore, some companies (Italy-absent from it) such as Audi, bmw, Renault, gm, Nissan, recondition the batteries to use them with accumulation systems in solar and wind power plants, reaching 60% recycling.

Speaking of the electric does not mean that different paths cannot be taken into consideration.
Solutions are always in the plural. But there are main and credible solutions (the electric one) and others that must be considered complementary (such as hydrogen, biofuels, e-fuel). Complementary because they can cover a part of the market and not the whole. It should be clarified that it is fake news to say that Italy is a leader in this sector because investments and long times are needed. Germany has slowed down on a 2035 European decision to negotiate an e-fuel regulation now, because its Porsche company is busy. It is worth offering some insight into these technologies.

What are e-fuels? They are synthetic fuels (to be distinguished from biofuels). Biofuels derive from the processing of vegetable and animal substances and from organic waste in an anaerobic environment. Synthetics are instead obtained through the chemical process of electrolysis to extract hydrogen from water, using energy from renewable sources. The hydrogen is mixed with carbon dioxide which is also extracted from the air. E-methanol is obtained, which is then still to be transformed into a liquid energy carrier. Paying attention to a production with limited emissions (will it be so?), the e-fuels burned in the engines could emit the same amount of CO2 previously sequestered into the atmosphere. In reality, it has already been calculated that a large amount of renewable energy is used, far more than is necessary to recharge the batteries of electric vehicles. The German house Porsche is building a pilot plant in Chile (where wind energy abounds) with international funding. It aims for use in motor-sport cars. It will start with the production of 130,000 liters to finally reach 66 million liters with 300 megawatts in 2026. The problems are costs: we will try to keep the selling price around 2 dollars per litre.
One figure is enough to understand the long road and the extent of the production of e-fuels: about 360 billion liters of fossil fuels are sold every day in Italy. Conclusion: e-fuels should only be used for heavier transports such as trucks, planes, ships.

In reality, Europe has already defined that, by setting the objective of 2035 as the end date for the production of cars with traditional engines, there will in any case be many stages of verification: in 2026 there will be the first stage to verify the infrastructural network and to verify the propensities of the market and the investments of the producers.
Better to know where you have to go with, and define a credible path in stages, than to wander around undecided on what to do. The market can and must be influenced to push it out of fossil fuels, otherwise there is the risk of never getting out of it. The main road is represented by the electric car. There may be other complementary solutions that can facilitate exit.


Carlo Degiacomi
NP May 2023