Renewable fuels - A comparative assessment from economic, energetic and ecological point-of-view up to 2050 in EU-countries

Fuels based on renewable energy sources (RES) such as a variety of first and second generation biofuels as well as electricity and hydrogen from RES, are considered an important means of coping with the environmental problems of transport. The objective of this paper is to investigate the "renewable fuels" from economic, energetic and ecological perspective within a dynamic framework until 2050. The key results show that all fuels analysed have lower CO2 emissions than gasoline, but drawbacks include the high costs of hydrogen- and electricity-driven vehicles. By 2050 however these costs could be reduced due to technological learning effects and efficient policy measures (e.g. CO2-based tax). We conclude that "renewable fuels" will only play a significant role if CO2 taxes, intensified R&D and technological learning are strategically implemented. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.