White Hydrogen Emerges as Hope for Decarbonization Amid Green Hydrogen Delays
Startups and researchers are racing to overcome the technical barriers to extracting naturally occurring white hydrogen, which could transform hard-to-abate sectors as green hydrogen deployment falters.
White hydrogen, found in geological deposits within the Earth's crust, is gaining attention as a potentially transformative decarbonization solution for industry, as progress on green hydrogen projects stalls worldwide.
According to a recent paper in Nature Energy, less than one tenth of announced green hydrogen projects had been realized by 2023, and only 7% of global green hydrogen capacity announcements finished on schedule. These delays, attributed to high costs and infrastructure challenges, have prompted stakeholders to seek alternatives.
Advocates such as Pierre Levin, CEO of Canadian startup Vema, argue that white hydrogen could bypass many of the barriers facing green hydrogen. Unlike green hydrogen—produced by electrolyzing water using renewable electricity—white hydrogen is sourced from naturally occurring geological reserves, offering the prospect of lower production costs and reduced environmental impacts if extraction hurdles can be cleared.
The scale of the opportunity is enormous. Research led by Chris Ballentine at Oxford highlights that hydrogen generated in the Earth’s continental crust contains energy equivalent to 170,000 years of present-day global oil consumption. However, the challenge lies in extracting and purifying this hydrogen at scale.
Reports from organizations such as Futura have emphasized the need for a "repeatable exploration recipe": a method to reliably locate and tap subsurface hydrogen flows. Current efforts focus on technologies to drill, capture, and separate hydrogen from other gases, but commercial viability remains unproven.
Startups and investors are accelerating research and pilot projects, hoping to deliver breakthroughs that could reshape the competitive landscape for hydrogen production. Success would provide a low-carbon alternative for emissions-intensive sectors like steelmaking and transportation—industries where green hydrogen's rollout has fallen short.
Despite the hype, risks remain. The complexity of geologic extraction, coupled with uncertainty over costs and regulatory frameworks, could slow progress. For now, white hydrogen represents both a technical challenge and a significant opportunity for Europe, Latin America, and global energy markets seeking scalable decarbonization pathways.
