"The current plans to cut previously earmarked budget funds from the Climate and Transformation Fund (KTF) are delaying the transformation of the economy and society," says Peter Müller-Baum, Managing Director of VDMA Power-to-X for Applications, commenting on the now detailed plans to cut budget funds. Projects to initiate synthetic fuels in aviation and shipping, for example, would suffer as a result.

According to Müller-Baum, the transformation is not a sure-fire success; it requires targeted and reliable support. This applies to air traffic as well as the maritime energy transition or the transport and building sector. Intended cuts must be carefully weighed up in order to minimize the damage to climate and industrial policy. This has not been achieved in the specific example of synthetic, sustainable fuels (eFuels). Such fuels are produced from green hydrogen and CO₂ and are seen as the key to CO₂-neutral flying, for example. They are still scarcely available and expensive, but a minimum quota will be mandatory in the EU from 2030. The planned removal of the subsidy now presents producers of sustainable aviation fuels and the aviation industry with almost insurmountable problems. Replacing fossil fuels is not trivial in other sectors either: "For mobile machines, battery-electric solutions are only an option in niches, and the direct use of hydrogen in fuel cells or H₂ engines is by no means a silver bullet," explains Müller-Baum. The same applies to the maritime energy transition, where, for example, the "climate-neutral ship" program has been cancelled. The urgently needed market ramp-up for eFuels must be supported politically and the approval of sustainable biofuels such as HVO must finally be accelerated. "This would also offer a perspective to industries that are currently absolutely dependent on conventional diesel," says Müller-Baum.

"By cutting funding, Germany is slowing down climate protection and putting its pioneering role in climate protection technologies at risk. It is also scaring off potential investors," explains Müller-Baum. "Power-to-X, hydrogen and its derivatives are rightly a beacon of hope for the energy transition. It is now important to apply the red pen carefully and at the same time look for alternative financing options."

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