The promising clean energy resource of the 21st century turned out to be hydrogen fuel, gaining world attention as an alternative fuel source in different sectors in substitution for fossil fuels. The existence of a vast industry in China regarding hydrogen fuel production has dramatically changed the clean fuel story with the use of coal-based production technologies, yielding what is referred to today as “black hydrogen.”
China dominates global hydrogen production with coal-based methods
China emerged as the world’s biggest producer of hydrogen with the production of 25 million metric tons per year, accounting for nearly one-third of the world’s production of 70 million metric tons. The production process in China has many significant differences from other major hydrogen producers in the world. This results in serious environmental issues.
Unlike other nations that use natural gas in the steam methane reforming process to obtain hydrogen gas, China produces most of its hydrogen from coal gasification. The use of this process not only consumes more carbon gases but also releases significant amounts of CO₂ in the process. The process releases 18-20 kilograms of CO₂ per kilogram of hydrogen gas production compared to 8-12 kilograms from the natural gas process.
The coal gasification process creates unprecedented carbon emissions
The coal gasification process involves the use of high temperatures in the process of synthesizing gas from the coal in order to yield hydrogen. This process yields vast amounts of carbon dioxide gas. For this reason, this process has been referred to as “black hydrogen” owing to the linkage with the black nature of coal. The other type of hydrogen generation, termed “brown hydrogen,” involves lignite coal.
Environmental impact reveals staggering carbon footprint from black hydrogen
The dependence of China’s hydrogen fuels on coal leaves the country in an environmental paradox in terms of the use of clean fuel, yet ending up with one of the most carbon-intensive fuels in existence. It has been noted that China’s dependence on coal in the production of hydrogen fuels poses one of the biggest threats to the world in fighting climate change through the use of hydrogen fuels.
The magnitude of black hydrogen production in China means that millions of tons of additional CO2 are released each year compared with clean methods of producing hydrogen. Environmental analysts have warned that if black hydrogen production in China continues to grow in the future, this may undermine progress that has been made in other forms of renewables. The Chinese are aware of this and are starting to look for ways to switch to clean methods of producing hydrogen.
“China produces 25 million tonnes of hydrogen every year, out of a global total of about 70 million. Some 62% of its hydrogen comes from coal gasification, 19% is from natural gas, 18% is a by-product from industrial processes, while less than 1% is actually green.”
Transition plans involve changing from black hydrogen to green hydrogen
The Chinese government recognizes the challenges faced by black hydrogen and has plans in place to create clean fuel solutions. Plans unveiled by the China Hydrogen Alliance include the deployment of 100 gigawatts of electrolyzers in 2030 that are all renewable-energy-based. This is a monumental change from the current production of hydrogen and moving towards clean production.
The Chinese hydrogen experience demonstrates the key role production technologies play in ensuring hydrogen can be considered a clean fuel. Even if China accounts for the majority of the world’s hydrogen production, producing “black hydrogen” through coal technologies renders the fuel anything but clean. Whether the hydrogen sector in China can be the solution to the problem or remain the cause now largely depends on the future of green hydrogen production in this country.
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