{"id":23706,"date":"2025-03-04T12:59:58","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T17:59:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?p=23706"},"modified":"2025-05-14T14:08:09","modified_gmt":"2025-05-14T18:08:09","slug":"blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/","title":{"rendered":"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

By<\/span><\/i> Beth Trask<\/span><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

This piece was originally published in<\/span><\/i> Hydrogen Insight<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When the global energy industry gathers at CERAWeek in Houston next week, they\u2019ll be reacting to a fast-changing energy landscape. But what hasn\u2019t changed is the global demand for cleaner energy \u2014 including clean hydrogen.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

However, most of the attention on clean H2 at the all-energy conference is likely to be on blue hydrogen. Produced from natural gas with its carbon dioxide emissions captured and stored underground, blue hydrogen is projected to receive the lion\u2019s share of private investment and taxpayer subsidies in the U.S.<\/p>\nBlue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n

But it\u2019s too early to say whether hydrogen made from natural gas can be a clean and globally competitive product. Even when carbon capture is highly effective, blue hydrogen could be up to 50% worse<\/a> for the climate over the next 20 years than fossil fuels if overall emissions aren\u2019t managed carefully.<\/p>\n

This is largely due to methane emitted upstream when natural gas is produced and processed. The primary component of natural gas, methane, is both a valuable source of energy and a potent greenhouse gas responsible for more than 25% of the warming we are experiencing today<\/a> \u2014 if allowed to leak into the atmosphere.<\/p>\n

In the U.S. alone, $3.5 billion worth of methane is wasted from leaks, venting, and flaring every year, enough to meet the annual needs of 19 million households. With few exceptions, oil and gas companies have been painfully slow at preventing wasted methane, and they won\u2019t be helped by current efforts to roll back common-sense U.S. policies, like the Waste Emissions Charge.<\/a><\/p>\n

Failure to manage and mitigate methane emissions not only puts billions of dollars of corporate and taxpayer investments in blue hydrogen at risk, but it also undercuts the very reason to produce hydrogen at all. To produce one million tonnes of blue hydrogen using natural gas sourced from the Permian basin, the upstream methane emissions alone would have the long-term climate impact of annual emissions from over seven gas-fired power plants.<\/p>\n

The good news \u2014 for the climate and industry \u2014 is that reducing methane emissions is both feasible and affordable today. We know how to detect and track methane emissions nearly anywhere on Earth. Industry has all the technical knowledge and capital it needs to virtually eliminate upstream methane emissions from its supply chain. Now it\u2019s time to execute.<\/p>\n

Methane isn\u2019t the only challenge. Another is capturing and permanently storing a meaningful amount of the carbon dioxide produced by blue hydrogen.<\/p>\n

To call blue hydrogen clean, at least \u200b\u200b95% of its CO2 emissions must be captured, with rigorous steps taken to ensure that the captured carbon that is stored underground will not leak over time.<\/p>\n

Similarly, hydrogen carries its own climate warming impacts when leaked or vented, and as the world\u2019s smallest molecule, it can easily escape and must be managed carefully.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot at stake in getting hydrogen right. Billions of shareholder and taxpayer dollars have been mobilized. Thousands of new jobs could be created, and entirely new hydrogen hubs around America could spur generations of economic growth.<\/p>\n

Clearly, this is not just about the climate. But ultimately, producing a climate-beneficial product that meets the expectations of the global marketplace is the point. We must ensure new energy solutions \u2014 like hydrogen \u2014 actually deliver the benefits they promise.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re spending too much time, energy, and money to fail.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Beth Trask This piece was originally published in Hydrogen Insight. When the global energy industry gathers at CERAWeek in Houston next week, they\u2019ll be reacting to a fast-changing energy landscape. But what hasn\u2019t changed is the global demand for cleaner energy \u2014 including clean hydrogen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"coauthors":[114057],"class_list":["post-23706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBlue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions - Energy Exchange<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions - Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Beth Trask This piece was originally published in Hydrogen Insight. When the global energy industry gathers at CERAWeek in Houston next week, they\u2019ll be reacting to a fast-changing energy landscape. But what hasn\u2019t changed is the global demand for cleaner energy \u2014 including clean hydrogen.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Energy Exchange\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-04T17:59:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-14T18:08:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/\/methanesatrendering.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"945\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"EDF Blogs\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"EDF Blogs\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"EDF Blogs\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aae063915aaf10301a322185853c51d3\"},\"headline\":\"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-04T17:59:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-14T18:08:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":588,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/wp-content\\\/blogs.dir\\\/38\\\/files\\\/\\\/methanesatrendering.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"General\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/\",\"name\":\"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions - Energy Exchange\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/wp-content\\\/blogs.dir\\\/38\\\/files\\\/\\\/methanesatrendering.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-04T17:59:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-14T18:08:09+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aae063915aaf10301a322185853c51d3\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/wp-content\\\/blogs.dir\\\/38\\\/files\\\/\\\/methanesatrendering.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/wp-content\\\/blogs.dir\\\/38\\\/files\\\/\\\/methanesatrendering.png\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/04\\\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/\",\"name\":\"Energy Exchange\",\"description\":\"Accelerating the clean energy revolution\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aae063915aaf10301a322185853c51d3\",\"name\":\"EDF Blogs\",\"description\":\"From time to time, the Energy Exchange blog includes posts from infrequent contributors, such as other EDF scientists and staff. Since these authors vary, we use this standard author bio profile for guest posts. For more information about this author, please see his\\\/her link at the beginning of the post.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.edf.org\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.edf.org\\\/energyexchange\\\/author\\\/admin\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions - Energy Exchange","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions - Energy Exchange","og_description":"By Beth Trask This piece was originally published in Hydrogen Insight. When the global energy industry gathers at CERAWeek in Houston next week, they\u2019ll be reacting to a fast-changing energy landscape. But what hasn\u2019t changed is the global demand for cleaner energy \u2014 including clean hydrogen.","og_url":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/","og_site_name":"Energy Exchange","article_published_time":"2025-03-04T17:59:58+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-05-14T18:08:09+00:00","og_image":[{"width":945,"height":576,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/\/methanesatrendering.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"EDF Blogs","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"EDF Blogs","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/"},"author":{"name":"EDF Blogs","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/#\/schema\/person\/aae063915aaf10301a322185853c51d3"},"headline":"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions","datePublished":"2025-03-04T17:59:58+00:00","dateModified":"2025-05-14T18:08:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/"},"wordCount":588,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/\/methanesatrendering.png","articleSection":["General"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/","url":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/","name":"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions - Energy Exchange","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/\/methanesatrendering.png","datePublished":"2025-03-04T17:59:58+00:00","dateModified":"2025-05-14T18:08:09+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/#\/schema\/person\/aae063915aaf10301a322185853c51d3"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/\/methanesatrendering.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/38\/files\/\/methanesatrendering.png"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/2025\/03\/04\/blue-hydrogen-hopes-hinge-on-managing-methane-emissions\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Blue hydrogen hopes hinge on managing methane emissions"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/","name":"Energy Exchange","description":"Accelerating the clean energy revolution","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/#\/schema\/person\/aae063915aaf10301a322185853c51d3","name":"EDF Blogs","description":"From time to time, the Energy Exchange blog includes posts from infrequent contributors, such as other EDF scientists and staff. Since these authors vary, we use this standard author bio profile for guest posts. For more information about this author, please see his\/her link at the beginning of the post.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.edf.org"],"url":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/author\/admin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23706"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23706\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23818,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23706\/revisions\/23818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23706"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/energyexchange\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=23706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}