Brussels 17 July 2025: Luis Cabra, President of FuelsEurope and Deputy CEO at Repsol, called during the Strategic Dialogue on the Sustainable Transport Investment Plan (STIP), hosted by Commissioner for Transport, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, for a STIP that goes beyond sector-specific regulations to deliver an integrated approach across all transport modes, including road, maritime, aviation, and non-road mobile machinery.

Speaking on behalf of FuelsEurope, representing 95% of Europe’s refining capacity, Luis Cabra called STIP a potential “cornerstone” in the EU’s transport decarbonisation strategy. He emphasised that STIP must go beyond sector-specific regulation to deliver an integrated approach across all transport modes, including road, maritime, aviation, and non-road mobile machinery.

Luis Cabra underlined “fuels manufacturing is a strategic industrial sector in Europe, providing 97% of transport energy and half of the chemical industry’s raw materials.” He however warned of structural risks: “Nearly a quarter of EU refineries have closed in the last 20 years, worsening Europe’s position as net importer of diesel and jet fuel.”

Despite these challenges, Luis Cabra outlined an ongoing and significant industry transformation requiring massive investments. “Our members have already taken final investment decisions on 27 renewable & low-carbon fuel and 18 green hydrogen projects. Eight biorefineries are producing 100% renewable fuels. The expertise, infrastructure, and commitment are in place, but we urgently need a clear EU Action Plan to scale this transition.”

FuelsEurope’ President urged policymakers to address the reality of co-production in fuel manufacturing and stressed “We don’t have separate plants for road, aviation, or marine fuels. These are produced together, and regulations must reflect that interdependence.” He warned that treating fuels in silos could lead to inefficiencies and missed opportunities to scale up low-carbon alternatives.

Luis Cabra proposed specific regulatory improvements:

• Expand the list of RED-eligible sustainable feedstocks and ensure all renewable and low- carbon fuels technologies receive equitable support under EU funding instruments, removing current barriers.
• Allow green hydrogen as a renewable fuel of non-biological origin (RFNBO) input with flexible eligibility conditions to meet the 2030 RFNBO targets.
• Create a lead market for renewable and low-carbon fuels that is currently missing, by recognising vehicles running on carbon-neutral fuels, both sustainable biofuels and e-fuels as “zero-emissions” in the upcoming LDV/HDV CO₂ regulation. This will help to scale up SAF and marine fuels and reduce cost.
• Bridge the cost gap between renewable and conventional fuels without burdening consumers and adopt lower taxes for renewable & low-carbon fuels in the Energy Taxation Directive.

Luis Cabra closed by reaffirming the industry’s commitment to collaborate with EU institutions to accelerate the deployment of renewable & low-carbon fuels across all transport modes. FuelsEurope, together with key aviation stakeholders, also published today a joint declaration calling for policy action on SAF, and urging action to accelerate the availability and affordability of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The full document handed over to Commissioner Tzitzikostas is available on our website: www.fuelseurope.eu