Germany imported roughly 72 percent of its oil, so the propulsion change does not remove dependence on vulnerable supplies. Diesel nevertheless offers more domestic options through synthetic production and, in theory, biodiesel, although growing fuel crops would compete with food. The army's vehicle fleet and the Luftwaffe's aviation-fuel demand overlap less directly with naval diesel than with some other petroleum products. Within the navy, submarines and surface ships would still compete for stocks, refinery output, and investment. Diesel therefore makes the supply problem more flexible, not free or strategically secure.
Notable Point · 1:24:27-1:28:27
Diesel eases one fuel problem without ending German constraints
A diesel fleet could draw on Germany's synthetic-fuel and refining potential more readily than a fuel-oil fleet, but it still competes for limited industrial resources.