Natural hydrogen reserves estimated at 5.6 trillion tonnes

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported in February 2024 that global in-place natural hydrogen reserves are estimated to be as high as 5.6 trillion tonnes. Scientific estimates suggest that extracting just 2% of this resource—approximately 112 billion tonnes—could potentially meet humanity's energy needs for the next 1,000 years. This amount of energy would be roughly 1.7 times the total proven natural gas reserves on Earth.

Despite the massive potential, widespread extraction remains difficult because much of the hydrogen is located too deep, is too dispersed, or is contaminated by other gases. Currently, the village of Bourakébougou in Mali is the only location in the world successfully exploiting natural hydrogen at a commercial scale. The site features at least five stacked hydrogen-bearing layers covering an area with a diameter exceeding 8 km, providing CO2-free electricity to the local population.