From 2022, ADAC and Shell will be using a sustainable fuel that consists of 50 per cent renewable components
The ADAC GT Masters and its frame series continue to consistently implement their promise of more sustainability on the track. After the “plastic-bottle-free paddock” campaign and a fundraising campaign for Africa by ADAC and BWT, which also continues, it is now moving on to the aspect that is likely to have the greatest symbolic impact: Reducing dependence on petroleum by 50 per cent for racing fuel.
The new petrol, called “Blue Gasoline 98 GT Masters”, consists of around 50 per cent renewable components, mainly derived from bio-waste. The new fuel will be used in the ADAC GT Masters, the ADAC GT4 Germany, the ADAC TCR Germany and in the ADAC Formula 4 starting this year.
It is a further development of the super petrol “Blue Gasoline 95”, which debuted for road use in 2021 with 33 per cent renewable content. Among other things, naphtha is added to the fuel. The advantage is that CO2 can also be saved during production.
In motorsport, a kind of race has broken out between different racing series to move as quickly as possible in the direction of CO2-neutral fuel. Formula 1 is switching to E10, (long commonplace in GT3 racing) MotoGP wants to use e-fuels from 2024 and become completely independent of oil by 2027.
Porsche is developing a synthetic fuel for its Cup racing series with Esso, and the World Endurance Championship is relying on 100 per cent renewable biofuel from waste from the grape harvest with TotalEnergies. In Japan, an entire industry consortium has come together to bring e-fuels and hydrogen powertrains to production maturity.
ADAC wants to push sustainability further
So the ADAC GT Masters is now following suit with Shell, the move had already been announced in 2021. “The new fuel is another building block in our mosaic of sustainable fuel solutions to help reduce CO2 emissions in the mobility sector,” said Felix Balthasar, Head of Special Fuels at Shell.
“Our involvement in motorsport is multi-faceted and has a long history. Under the extreme conditions on the race tracks, we gain important insights for the research and development of alternative fuels for the road. “
ADAC Sports President Gerd Ennser added: “The use of an environmentally friendly fuel from our long-time supplier Shell in the ADAC GT Masters and its frame racing series is another step in our multi-stage plan for more sustainability in motorsport.”
“With the introduction of a sustainable fuel in professional customer sport, the German GT Championship underlines its pioneering role and makes an important contribution to CO2 reduction.”
ADAC board member Lars Soutschka still sees motorsport as an “innovation centre” from which series development for the road benefits. “With various initiatives and innovations, ADAC makes it clear that motorsport and sustainability are not mutually exclusive,” he says with regard to the sustainability projects with Shell and BWT.
His promise: “We will continue to develop the ADAC GT Masters as a top form of motorsport in Europe from a sustainable point of view in the future. “