Rheinmetall has partnered with INERATEC to deliver synthetic fuel solutions for European defense and security customers.
The collaboration will focus on the scalable power-to-liquid (PtL) process, which converts renewable electricity into liquid fuels, enabling a strategic shift away from dependence on traditional fossil fuels.
Their priority is to become a leading supplier of “secure, redundant, and consistent” carbon-neutral energy for defense operations, associated key infrastructure, and medical facilities, in crisis and peacetime.
According to the consortium, this “Giga PtX” project will promote an efficient and climate-friendly fuel that matches the military’s energy density, storability, and versatility requirements.
This will address current fuel consumption jumps between 20 and 60 liters per soldier daily, making synthetic fuels “indispensable for modern defense readiness.”
“INERATEC makes an important contribution to resilience – and the defense sector is a powerful catalyst to scale resilient, clean technologies,” INERATEC Chief Commercial Officer Maximilian Backhaus explained.
“This partnership proves that energy resilience and defossilization go hand in hand. By delivering scalable [PtL] solutions for systemically important operations, we demonstrate how European climate tech can play a pioneering role – not only ecologically, but strategically.”
Rheinmetall’s Karlsruhe-based counterpart INERATEC in this Giga PtX framework is one of the largest PtL providers in Europe, producing up to 2,500 tonnes (5,511,557 pounds) of synthetic fuel annually.
Its major operations are located across Werlte, Hamburg, and Frankfurt. Another INERATEC plant is expected to be built in Amsterdam by 2027.