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Wolff: Sustainable F1 fuel costs more than expected

Toto Wolff, Mercedes' team chief, says that the switch to 100 percent sustainable fuel in Formula One from next season has proven to be more costly than anticipated.

One of the engine makers raised the issue of fuel costs at a recent Formula One Commission meeting, which included team managers and other major stakeholders.

Wolff, speaking to reporters at the Miami Grand Prix round six of the year, said that it is expensive because the entire supply chain and the energy contribution must be green.

"To achieve that, you'll need to use a very specific set of ingredients which are expensive. It's much more expensive than expected.

We need to see if there is anything we can do to reduce the price per litre.

Wolff stated that Mercedes' fuel partner Petronas is fully committed to sustainable fuels, but they are also looking at whether a change in regulation could make it more financially viable.

Christian Horner, the Red Bull boss, acknowledged that there were many development costs involved but claimed it was not an issue for his team.

"Perhaps a new bracket could be introduced in the future." Fuel is one of the biggest performance differences. Fuel companies are very involved in this," he said.

Formula One has a goal to become carbon-neutral by 2030. This plan covers the cars and sports operations on race weekends. (Reporting from Alan Baldwin in London and editing by Ed Osmond.)

(source: Reuters)