T&E warns against artificially reviving internal combustion engines
Image: Mercedes-Benz (illustrative)
Lucien Mathieu, director of the automotive sector at the Brussels-based environmental organization Transport & Environment (T&E), criticizes the planned EU regulation for internal combustion engine vehicles that must run solely on approved biofuels or synthetic e-fuels.
The European Parliament is discussing a classification for these vehicles, referred to as VEEF (“Vehicle Exclusively running on Eligible Fuels”). Legally, they might be allowed to have zero CO₂ emissions at the tailpipe. Mathieu sees this as an attempt to extend the use of internal combustion engines.
Mathieu criticizes the fact that burning biofuels still produces pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and fine dust. He also offers a critical assessment of their climate impact. While today’s average biofuel blends result in 20 to 40 percent fewer emissions than fossil fuels, according to him, when indirect changes in land use associated with first-generation plant-based biofuels are taken into account, cars powered by them emit 23 percent more greenhouse gases than conventional gasoline engines.
Mathieu is also critical of operating costs and the availability of fuels. For vehicles using hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), he estimates fuel costs at around 13 euros per 100 kilometers, compared to about seven euros for a similar electric vehicle. Europe also produces only enough advanced gasoline biofuels to supply roughly one million vehicles. The EU’s parliamentary compromise calls for allowing fuels derived from food crops by 2032 and requiring new biofuel models starting in 2033 to use only advanced fuels made from waste and residues.
To ensure the exclusive use of approved fuels, the proposed solutions include sensors, tamper-proof technology, and electronic limits on engine power. Additionally, digital approval systems at fuel pumps and possibly two separate gas station networks for different fuel types are suggested.
Mathieu also criticizes plans for so-called “mass balancing,” which could allow conventional biofuel blends to be counted mathematically. Given the more than 200 billion euros already pledged in investments for Europe’s electric vehicle and battery supply chain, he urges lawmakers to reject the proposed exception.
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Thomas Langenbucher is an expert in electromobility with professional experience in the automotive industry and finance sector. Since 2011, he has been covering electric vehicles, sustainable technologies, and mobility solutions for ecomento.de. Learn more.
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