Renewable Fuels: The Ignored Piece in the Decarbonization Puzzle

The obsession with the electric vehicle as the sole solution for decarbonizing road transport is beginning to show its cracks. Against a monolithic approach, the voice of Mario Draghi, with his report on European competitiveness, has erupted with the force of someone demanding pragmatism over ideology. His defense of “technological neutrality” is not a nostalgia for the past, but a crucial warning: a just and competitive transition cannot afford to discard valid and available tools. In a context of geopolitical uncertainty and strategic dependence, Draghi points out the obvious: putting all our eggs in one basket is a risk Europe cannot take.

Renewable fuels thus emerge not as a plan B, but as a strategic and immediate ally. The Platform for Renewable Fuels underscores their proven effectiveness: the recent Tour d’Europe demonstrated a 67% reduction in emissions. This data is powerful. While waiting for the electric charging infrastructure to mature – a real “Trojan horse” in the European roadmap, as IRU warns – these fuels offer almost instant decarbonization for a vehicle fleet of millions. Their virtue lies in immediacy: they are compatible with current engines and leverage the existing distribution network, ensuring supply security.

However, the European regulatory framework seems intent on closing this door. The ban on the sale of internal combustion engines in 2035, based on a purely “tank-to-wheel” approach, deliberately ignores technological neutrality. As David Howell, an expert in climate policies at SEO/BirdLife in Spain, explains, “the risk of an overly rigid regulation is that it discourages critical investments in other complementary technologies, such as synthetic fuels, which will be essential for aviation and maritime transport.” This short-sighted view particularly penalizes heavy transport, where mass electrification is, today, a technical and logistical pipe dream.

The situation is particularly worrying for Spain, a country with a powerful logistics industry and intense road freight traffic. The absence of differentiated taxation that incentivizes the use of renewable fuels, as demanded by the Platform, puts us at a disadvantage compared to other European partners. María García de la Banda, director of the Chair for Energy Transition at Comillas-ICAI University, confirms this: “Spain has enormous potential to produce green hydrogen and synthetic fuels. Smart regulation that internalizes the emissions of the complete life cycle, and not just those from the exhaust, could turn us into an energy hub and create a high value-added auxiliary industry.”

The underlying debate is deeper: it’s about choosing between a disruptive and traumatic transition, or an evolutionary and inclusive one. The potential mandates for purchasing zero-emission trucks, which so concern transporters, could push thousands of SMEs out of the market if applied prematurely. Decarbonization cannot be a luxury that only large corporations can afford. The “autonomy on the route” that professionals speak of is not just a matter of mileage, but of economic survival.

In short, the effective inclusion of renewable fuels in the decarbonization path is not a whim of the traditional sector. It is a matter of strategic intelligence, competitiveness, and social justice. The revision of the emissions regulations in 2025 is a historic opportunity for the EU to correct its course and finally embrace a principle it always claimed to defend: technological neutrality. The path to 2050 is too long and complex to traverse on one leg.