{"id":45864,"date":"2022-02-15T13:50:39","date_gmt":"2022-02-15T13:50:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatechangenews.com\/?p=45864"},"modified":"2022-02-16T12:36:20","modified_gmt":"2022-02-16T12:36:20","slug":"experts-sound-alarm-oil-sectors-blue-hydrogen-push","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2022\/02\/15\/experts-sound-alarm-oil-sectors-blue-hydrogen-push\/","title":{"rendered":"Experts sound the alarm on oil sector’s blue hydrogen push"},"content":{"rendered":"

The oil and gas industry is promoting the use of\u00a0<\/strong>“low-carbon” hydrogen derived from methane that is potentially dirtier than burning fossil gas for energy, scientists and analysts have told Climate Home News.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

Observers say the European Commission\u2019s decision to classify gas as <\/span>a transition fuel in its green investment list<\/span><\/a> leaves the door open to \u201cblue hydrogen\u201d projects with exaggerated climate credentials.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cBlue hydrogen is basically nothing but a smokescreen for more air pollution, mining, and fossil fuel use with hardly any CO2 benefit,\u201d said Mark Jacobson, professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of the Atmosphere\/Energy Program at Stanford University.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Unlike green hydrogen, which is derived from water in a process powered exclusively by renewable energy, blue hydrogen comes from methane, with the carbon dioxide emitted during production captured and stored.<\/p>\r\n

The <\/span>International Energy Agency reported last week<\/span><\/a> that there are at least 50 blue hydrogen projects under development globally, and capacity is set to increase more than tenfold by 2030.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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European Commission<\/strong> endorses fossil gas as \u2018transition\u2019 fuel for private investment<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

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In a delegated act<\/a> last year, the EU Commission set an emissions threshold of just over 3 tonnes of CO2e per tonne of H2 for hydrogen projects to comply with the green taxonomy.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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\u201cW<\/span>hich is not low enough to guarantee that it would be only renewable energy-powered hydrogen,\u201d said Eleonora Moro, a hydrogen analyst at the E3G climate think tank.\u00a0<\/span>\u201cIt could include some types of high efficiency blue hydrogen projects.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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One such project is a joint venture <\/span>announced by Equinor and Engie<\/span><\/a> in December to produce \u201clow-carbon hydrogen\u2026 at large scale and at competitive cost levels\u201d. The companies claim that they will use a process known as autothermal reforming (ATR), which \u201callows for decarbonization rates above 95%\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The project sponsors some editions of POLITICO’s Brussels Playbook<\/a> newsletter, telling readers: “Hydrogen can accelerate the energy transition but we need to develop well-functioning markets and infrastructure.\u00a0The H2BE project\u00a0will help kick-start the Belgian low-carbon hydrogen market.”<\/p>\r\n

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Seven countries<\/strong> join US and EU in methane reduction pledge<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

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ATR involves heating methane gas with a catalyst, then adding water to get hydrogen and CO2 that is then captured. Equinor says it will bury the captured CO2 beneath the North Sea.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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The EU\u2019s hydrogen strategy<\/a>, published in 2020, says that \u201crenewable\u00a0 and low-carbon hydrogen can contribute to reduce greenhouse gas emissions ahead of 2030\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Jacobson disputed Equinor and Engie\u2019s claim that blue hydrogen can be classified as \u201clow-carbon\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u201cCarbon capture equipment is never 95% effective,\u201d he told Climate Home.\u00a0<\/span>Blue hydrogen capture technology currently available is at best 78.8% effective, \u201cbut that ignores the fact that more energy is needed to run carbon capture equipment, so it is 78.8% of a much larger emission stream\u201d.<\/span>\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\r\n

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Jacobson co-wrote a study last year<\/a> which found, due to the increased amount of fossil gas needed to power the carbon capture and storage (CCS) process, blue hydrogen likely had a 20% higher carbon footprint than burning methane alone.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Comment: <\/strong>Why the hydrogen bubble could burst in Europe\u2019s face<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

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A paper by different researchers last month<\/a> noted that developers\u2019 promises of a 90-95% CCS success rate were based on theory, not practice.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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\u201cWhile these high capture rates are assumed in many national strategies and major reports, they have not yet been achieved in a large-scale commercial plant,\u201d said the paper, published in the journal Applied Energy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Another issue with blue hydrogen projects is that the methane feedstock can leak, with a short-term warming impact more than 80 times that of CO2.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Countries agreed at the last UN climate summit in November to reduce methane emissions by 30%<\/a>\u00a0this decade, and an EU Commission proposal seeks a ban on routine gas flaring and venting as well as penalties on leaks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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Yet the draft legislation doesn\u2019t set specific emissions reduction targets, and E3G’s Moro said leakages – <\/span>which may be as much as 4% in some countries<\/span><\/a> – could only be penalised if effectively observed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n