ADVANCEFUEL at Fuels of the Future 2018

FNR, the co-ordinator of the ADVANCEFUEL project, attended the 15th international ‘Fuels of the Future’ conference, which took place in Berlin on 22-23 January. The conference is the leading European forum on future mobility, particularly with its focus on alternative fuels and drive technologies.

ADVANCEFUEL will explore technological, economic and logistical barriers to the use of advanced biofuels in order to support market roll-out in the long-term, and will provide recommendations for improving policy frameworks on sustainable transport. The conference provided an occasion for increasing awareness of the project, and engaging stakeholders on the project’s aims.

The Conference on Renewable Mobility offered a broad spectrum of presentations on the latest technological developments and innovations in the transport industry. Around 580 participants from more than 25 countries took part, including representatives from research, industry, politics, associations as well as NGOs, to gain new insights on the most current technological as well as political developments in this sector.

Several political and scientific contributions showed that the climate targets in the transport sector are hard to meet. Many short-term measures in different areas and sectors (technology, infrastructure, industry and society) would be needed to make a considerable change. In this context, the lack of a focused and stable (long-term) political framework was often criticised by speakers as well as the audience.

Many questions are still open in regard to the definition and formulation of the European renewable fuel policy after 2020 (RED II). The pending Trialogue discussions (negotiations of European Parliament, Council and Commission) need to address aspects such as land use change, capping of first generation biofuels, use of advanced renewable fuels and other measures for GHG reduction.

On the second day the focus was on the scientific and technological innovations, with presentations on advanced renewable fuel options like power-to x technologies being of major interest for the audience. Conference discussions, however, made it clear that a market roll-out of these processes cannot be expected in the very near future.