BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 1. Global production and distribution of low-emission fuels need to be introduced more rapidly to move to the net zero scenario, Trend reports via the latest publication from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
“Low-emission fuels met almost 3 percent of liquid fuel demand in end-use sectors in 2021, entirely in the form of liquid biofuels. By 2030 in the Net Zero Scenario, low-emission fuels meet 12 percent of global liquid fuel demand. Low-emission liquid fuels meet 18 percent of the energy needed in road transport, 15 percent in shipping and 7 percent in aviation by 2030. Biofuels continue to dominate low-emission liquid fuel supply by 2030, with a share of 95 percent,” the report said.
Still, as the Agency noted, the development of supply chains for hydrogen-derived liquid fuels, such as ammonia and synthetic kerosene, will be critical for long-distance transport decarbonization process, and reducing burden on sustainable bioenergy supplies.
As the IEA suggests, the sustainable supply chain should be ensured with the development of standards and certification schemes, which will be critical for production increase of both biofuels and hydrogen, at the same time avoiding potentially harmful environmental, economic and social impacts.
“The development of international markets and trade in these fuels will also depend on internationally agreed methods and certification processes to guarantee the sustainability of traded fuels,” the report noted.
Also, it is necessary for policy makers to create support programs to ‘close the cost gap’, ensuring that low-emission fuels are being produced sustainably.
“Policy instruments can include: penalties for unabated fossil fuels, such as CO2 prices; quotas and standards for low-emission fuels in different sectors; and incentives to reduce the cost of low-emission fuels or end-use technologies using these fuels,” the agency said.
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