Mercedes-Benz research and development boss Markus Schäfer says synthetic fuels are not viable for the automotive industry in the immediate future.
During a recent interview with Autocar, Schäfer said the German car manufacturer is committed to electrifying its cars and does not believe synthetic fuels to replace petrol and diesel are the way to go.
“We have made a clear decision that our way will be electric first,” Schäfer said. “When we develop new platforms, we think electric first. We have to watch regulations and customer behavior, but this will be our main road.”
Read Also: Mercedes EQC US Launch Delayed As Company Decides To Focus On Europe First
“If you have an abundance of energy, the best use is to put it directly into a battery. To transform green energy into an e-fuel is a process where you lose a lot of efficiency. If there were more clean energies available, then the first customers would probably be in the aviation industry. Far, far later – I don’t see this in the next 10 years – will come the car industry,” Schäfer added.
While Mercedes-Benz is skeptical about the future of synthetic fuels, other major car manufacturers actually consider it as a viable alternative to the fuels currently powering ICE vehicles. In April, Volkswagen technical chief Matthias Rabe said synthetic fuels made from biomass and other materials will allow car manufacturers like it to build ICE engines well into the future.
Similarly, Mazda is conducting research into recyclable liquid fuels made from microalgae. Over in the supercar realm, McLaren chief operating officer Jens Ludman claims the company is looking to build a development car that runs on synthetic fuel.
