Norway's big oil producer Equinor bets €10bn on hydrogen            

Equinor, the flagship producer of oil and gas giant Norway, is investing billions of dollars in blue hydrogen on a bet that it can make the fuel more cleanly than anyone else.

The state-controlled oil firm is among energy companies across Europe stepping up plans for hydrogen as mounting pressure to fight climate change spurs massive shifts in investment. Equinor believes it has the edge in the race to commercialize the industry because it leaks less methane than its rivals.

The company is focusing on blue hydrogen, which is made from natural gas and has been touted as key to cleaning up industries such as steel, cement and aviation. Yet it’s also drawn criticism, since its production releases carbon dioxide that must be captured and stored, while the process of gas extraction and transportation emits methane, an even more potent greenhouse gas.

“We work with catch rates of 95% CO2 capture,” vice president of low-carbon technology Henrik Solgaard Andersen said. It’s a “prerequisite” that the technology Equinor uses has “high efficiency and a high catch rate.” 

That compares with a maximum rate of 90% from “standard” technology, according to the International Energy Agency.

The company plans around €10bn of investment in hydrogen -- comprising its own spending, partners’ contributions and state funding -- by 2035. 

It can count on an abundant supply of gas, with Norway pumping more than any other country in western Europe, and says its methane leak rate is below 0.03%.

Bloomberg