Twelve E-diesel: Drop-in Fuel and CO2 Traceability in 2025
Twelve's Electrol e-diesel is a drop-in fuel made via CO2 electrolysis: fully compatible and high-performing, but traceability is the key criterion for buyers.
Understanding e-diesel: Twelve's AirPlant example
Electrol, the fuel developed by Twelve, is a drop-in e-diesel produced from CO2, water and electricity using AirPlant technology. This Power-to-X process converts the three inputs into syngas, then into synthetic hydrocarbons that can be used directly in existing diesel engines.
This approach reshapes fuel production geography. Rather than relying on centralised refineries and long supply chains, CO2 electrolysis enables onshore, distributed production close to consumption sites or sources of low-carbon electricity.
For buyers, this can mean less exposure to the geopolitical and logistical disruptions affecting fossil fuels. Local production also paves the way for more predictable supply contracts.
What are the practical impacts for fleets?
The main advantage of drop-in e-diesel is its full compatibility with existing engines and infrastructure. No changes to engines, tanks or distribution networks are required: the fuel integrates directly into current operations.
In terms of performance, Electrol is equivalent to conventional diesel, removing the usual trade-offs associated with alternative fuels. Fleet managers therefore do not need to choose between decarbonisation and operational reliability.
Across its life cycle, Electrol e-diesel can cut emissions by up to 90 percent compared with fossil diesel.
Critical applications: from heavy transport to data centers
Drop-in compatibility makes e-diesel especially relevant for sectors where electrification remains difficult or too slow to deploy. Several energy-intensive industries are already exploring it to secure their decarbonisation path without a technology break.
- Heavy-duty road transport, for fleets with intensive duty cycles
- Defence, where energy resilience and autonomy are priorities
- Heavy equipment, as illustrated by machinery used by Tokyu Construction
- Mining, in remote and energy-intensive environments
- Data centers, facing growing backup power needs
- Critical infrastructure and agriculture, where operational continuity is essential
In these contexts, distributed e-diesel production makes particular sense, supplying remote or strategic sites without depending on a long and vulnerable logistics chain.
How to choose: tracing CO2 and electricity origin
As these new volumes come to market, mere fuel availability is no longer enough to base a purchasing decision on. Two e-diesels with identical technical specifications can have very different carbon footprints depending on the origin of the captured CO2 and the electricity used.
Certifying the origin of CO2 (direct air capture, industrial point source, biogenic source) and of electricity (renewable guarantees of origin, local grid mix) becomes the deciding factor. This is what separates a genuinely low-carbon fuel from one presented as such without verifiable evidence.
For a buyer, requiring documented traceability is not excessive caution: it is a direct safeguard against greenwashing risk and against any future challenge to the claimed environmental benefits.
How Heeding supports this process
Heeding is a marketplace that connects sustainable fuel buyers with innovative e-fuel producers, without ever selling in its own name. This neutral position allows buyers to objectively compare offers, available volumes and commercial terms from multiple suppliers.
Beyond connecting parties, Heeding centralises the traceability documentation tied to each order: CO2 origin, electricity origin, certifications and supporting evidence. Procurement and compliance teams thus have a single file ready for audits or non-financial reporting.
To secure your sustainable fuel volumes and their traceability, run your free Heeding Flash Diagnostic.
