Porsche is already building a synthetic fuel factory. Will it be a rescue for internal combustion engines?

Some time ago, Porsche announced that it and its partners are planning to produce synthetic fuel. It should be ecological and climate neutral. Now the next step is, Porsche is already building a factory where it will produce this fuel.

Porsche’s main partner in this project is Siemens. The factory is being set up in Chile, South America, and is expected to produce the first emission-friendly fuel next year. This should produce about 130 thousand liters of fuel. When the plant is fully operational, it should produce approximately 550 million liters of synthetic fuel per year.

Siemens Energy, Porsche and other partners support the development of climate-neutral e-fuel

According to a press release, Chile can offer very favorable climatic conditions for cheap electricity production using wind energy. It therefore has a very high potential internationally in terms of production, export and local use of green hydrogen. In the production of ecological hydrogen using wind energy, electrolysers break down water into two components – oxygen and hydrogen. The plan in the second step is to filter the CO₂ from the air and then use it together with green hydrogen to produce synthetic methanol. The result is renewable methanol that can be turned into a climate-neutral fuel using MTG (Methanol To Gasoline) technology under license and with the support of ExxonMobil.

Production will take place using electricity from renewable sources and using CO₂ captured from the atmosphere. Thanks to this, the fuel should be ecological, because it will compensate for CO emissions₂which would be caused by its combustion in the engine. In addition to “cleanliness”, the advantage should be the fact that such fuel should be usable without any problems for older cars with internal combustion engines.

In the first, ie next year of production, the fuel (estimated at 130 thousand liters) should be used mainly for Porsche racing cars and in the brand’s promotional cars within the so-called Porsche Experience Center. By 2024, 55 million liters should be produced, and in 2026, the already mentioned 550 million liters per year. In the first phase, the German sports car manufacturer is investing approx. 20 million euros.

However, it should also be added that this fuel is not intended to save the world, but to help Porsche keep internal combustion engines on offer for as long as possible. In addition, it is not just about selling new cars, but also about running historic models that also need petrol to drive.

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