Porsche has been on the synthetic fuel train for a while now, and its latest assertion is that the technology will be as green as an electric vehicle when considered holistically.
We reported last week that the German manufacturer expects to start testing e-fuels as soon as 2022. Now, speaking to Evo Magazine, Frank Walliser, Porsche’s vice president of motorsports and GT cars, has said that considered on a “wheel to well” perspective, the technology will be impressively green.
“Emissions are way better than current pump fuel, with less particulates and less NOx produced,” said Walliser. “From a ‘well to wheel’ perspective – and you have to consider the well to wheel impact of all vehicles – this will be the same level of CO2 produced in the manufacture and use of an electric vehicle.”
Indeed, EVs are emission-heavy to produce. Polestar revealed last year that its research indicated that, as a result of how hard batteries are to produce, its electric vehicles only start being greener than gas-powered cars after at least 30,000 miles.
Read More: Porsche Will Begin Testing Synthetic Fuels In 2022
As better technology progresses, the hope is that battery production will become greener. As demand rises, though, it will be hard to balance environmentalism with the need to quickly produce batteries.
Although Porsche is making the all-electric Taycan, its CEO, Oliver Blume, has previously said that up to 70% of the cars the company has ever built could run on e-fuel. That could allow owners of older Porsches to continue enjoying their rides in the future.
Porsche’s e-fuel is made by combining hydrogen and carbon captured from the air to produce methanol. That is then brewed into a fuel that internal combustion engines can use. The company admits, though, that producing high volumes will be the work of many years.
