Why cars need both electrification and renewable fuels

Published in 2025

How can we truly defossilize cars? Is electrification enough – or do we need more?

Passenger cars alone are responsible for about 9.5% of global CO₂ emissions,¹ making this sector one of the largest single contributors to climate change. Policymakers, industry, and the public often view electric cars as the silver bullet for solving this challenge. And it’s true: for cars, electrification is a cornerstone of the transition. Electric vehicles (EVs) are efficient, and when powered by renewable electricity, they drastically reduce emissions. But the challenge is bigger than electrifying new cars. Millions of cars with internal combustion engines (ICE) are already on the road – and will remain there for years to come.

The journey to a net-zero car sector is more complex than it seems. The recent study – Combining electrification and alternative fuels: an effective strategy to decarbonize the car sector – by Christoph Falter, Head of Strategy at Synhelion, et al., published in npj Sustainable Mobility and Transport (Nature Portfolio), provides an answer. It shows that the most effective way to decarbonize the car sector is not an “either-or” choice, but a combined strategy: accelerate electrification of new cars if possible, while simultaneously defossilizing the existing fleet with alternative fuels.

What the study found

The research modeled different electrification scenarios based on EV adoption rates and the carbon intensity of national electricity grids. It compared these pathways against the car sector’s carbon budget for meeting climate targets. Three key insights stand out:

• EVs are crucial, but not enough. Faster electrification of new cars is one of the most powerful ways to cut emissions. But even with ambitious EV adoption, a large fleet of combustion cars will remain for decades, especially in emerging economies where vehicle ownership is still growing.
• Renewable fuels close the gap. To reduce emissions from this existing fleet, renewable drop-in fuels can deliver cuts of 80–90% compared to fossil fuels. Without them, climate goals remain out of reach.
• The study shows that while an ICE ban can significantly reduce overall emissions, the timing of such a ban is less important than implementing defossilization strategies like rapid electrification and renewable fuels.

To conclude, it’s about synergy, not competition: Electrification and renewable fuels are complementary solutions that must go hand in hand.

Why this matters

The findings matter not only for policymakers and industry, but for society at large. A combined strategy ensures:

• Faster progress: Tackling both new and existing cars reduces emissions earlier, buying time against shrinking carbon budgets.
• Resilience: If electrification faces delays due to infrastructure or supply chain constraints, renewable fuels can fill the gap.
• Equity: Emerging economies can continue to grow mobility access without locking in high emissions, while older vehicles in developed countries also become part of the solution.

In short, this approach avoids a false choice between technologies. It makes defossilization more inclusive, more realistic, and more cost-effective.

Synhelion’s role

At Synhelion, we are producing one of these essential solutions: renewable synthetic fuels – jet fuel for aircraft, diesel for ships and trucks, and gasoline for cars. Our technology uses renewable energy to turn biomethane, CO₂, and water into renewable synthetic fuels. These fuels can directly replace fossil fuels or be blended with them, and they work seamlessly in today’s engines or infrastructure without modifications.

This makes them ideally suited to reduce emissions from the global fleet of combustion vehicles, while electrification continues to scale. By linking renewable fuels with clean electricity, we can accelerate the transition across all regions and vehicle types.

The road ahead

Defossilizing the car sector is one of the important challenges to reach a net-zero transportation sector. The study by Christoph Falter et al. makes one thing clear: there is no single solution. True progress will come from technological openness and synergy, not rivalry.

Electric vehicles and renewable fuels are not opponents – they are complementary solutions, forming a powerful duo that can deliver clean, reliable, and affordable mobility.

The path to a net-zero future is not about choosing sides. It’s about combining strengths. And that is how we will drive change.

Find out more about our renewable synthetic fuels and subscribe to our newsletter to follow us on our path to clean, sustainable transportation.
 
 *****

Sources:
[1] climate.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2023-03/swd_2023_54_en.pdf, ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions-from-transport