New ICE Engines, Renewable Gasoline Blend, Outlook for Germany’s LNG Imports, and Europe’s Oil Imports

In Today’s Issue:

• New ICE Engines, The New Renewable Gasoline Blend, and Their Impact on Global Oil Demand (1 infographic)

• The Netherlands’ Crude Imports from African Producers, Other Suppliers (4 Charts)

• Germany’s Plans to Access Global LNG (4 Charts)

MAIN TAKEAWAYS

1. The renewable gasoline blend solution is still in its infancy, while technologies to produce efficient and low emissions ICE engines are not ready yet.

2. All the changes that are being carried out to comply with climate change policies are weather dependent: wind, solar, tide, hydro, and now biofuel. They all contribute to volatility in the energy supply.

3. One of the most noticeable changes in the Netherlands’ oil market has been the increase in crude oil imports from African producers.

4. Looking at the Netherlands’ imports of oil products from China this year, we noticed a jump from 72,000 b/d in January to around 120,000 b/d in February.

5. Germany has taken a series of actions to shift away from Russian gas and halt any remaining flows by the summer of 2024.  It has secured several LNG projects to access the global LNG market.

6. German LNG projects backed by the government and the private sector will enable Germany to have the fourth-largest LNG import capacity by the end of the decade behind China, Japan, and South Korea.

New ICE Engines and the New Renewable Gasoline Blend

One of today’s key problems in the energy industry is that electric vehicles require new infrastructure and expanded power grids, and the cost in the coming decades is expected to be outrageously high.

There are a few alternatives that can be embraced to avoid such costs without having to change the existing infrastructure and factories, and in some cases, the vehicles themselves. 

What if fuel economy in ICE engines substantially improves, whereby gasoline consumption can be cut by 80%-90%?  

Saudi Aramco is working with partners on several technologies that can reduce fuel consumption, and consequently carbon emissions. Figure (1) below shows the various approaches and technologies which Aramco and its partners are working on to “achieve higher efficiency and lower emissions”.  We explore these technologies in detail below.

Figure (1)

Source: Saudi Aramco, 2023

Compression-Ignition Engines (GCI)