International Discussions to Begin on E-fuel Rules with Japan in Lead

The Yomiuri Shimbun

6:00 JST, September 12, 2023

Several countries including Japan and Germany will start to develop international rules for issues such as quality standardization for the widespread use of e-fuel, a synthetic fuel made from carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen.

E-fuel, also called artificial crude oil, can be used as an alternative to fossil fuels and is seen as a key to decarbonization.

State Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Minister, Fusae Ota, attended an international conference on Sept. 4 of 11 countries, including Japan and Germany. Japan led the discussions at the conference, and the countries agreed on the need to establish rules for standardizing the quality of e-fuel. They also confirmed the importance of sharing technical knowledge on e-fuel and the need to continuously deepen discussions among the countries concerned, especially Japan and Germany.

E-fuel has attracted global interest as the European Union decided to allow vehicles with engines that use e-fuel, reversing its previous policy of banning the sale of new cars with engines from 2035.

However, the production cost of e-fuel is much higher than gasoline at ¥300-¥700 per liter. In order to popularize e-fuel, it is essential to establish mass production technology and reduce costs.