In its Climate Protection Plan 2050, the German government has set the target for the transport sector of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 42% in the period 1990-2030. Renewable fuels can make a significant contribution to achieving this goal. This guideline is therefore intended to support the further development of electricity-based fuels and advanced biofuels.
More development work is still needed for both advanced biofuels and electricity-based fuels not only in relation to the entire chain, but also for individual process steps on a larger scale, to enable them to make a major contribution to greenhouse gas reduction in the medium term. Specifically, there is still a considerable need for the development of innovative production processes in order to achieve the necessary technological maturity for market entry and market ramp-up. For processes with a higher level of technological maturity, there is still potential for optimisation and efficiency to be exploited with the aim of reducing costs. Questions of sustainable raw material procurement should also be investigated. The focus of this funding guideline is on application-oriented projects. In addition to universities, colleges and non-university research institutions, funding is also intended to support commercial enterprises and municipal companies, e.g. from the areas of plant construction, component production (electrolysis, synthesis processes) as well as fuel production and use in the (further) development of necessary technology solutions.
In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the incentives provided by the funding should also address the following objectives:
- Acceleration of the transfer of technology and innovations to advance pioneering production processes for advanced biofuels and electricity-based fuels
- Achievement of the necessary technological maturity for market entry and ramp-up- Promotion of innovation
- Expansion of the current technological leadership while simultaneously strengthening Germany as a business location
- Acceleration of the decarbonisation process in the transport sector