Oil and gas companies have been exploring blue hydrogen as it enables them to capitalize on existing skills and processes, reduce overall emissions, and future-proof their operations through product diversification. However, shifting corporate strategies has resulted in a downturn of activity for oil and gas players within the blue hydrogen market over the past year.
Currently, blue hydrogen accounts for the lion's share of active low-carbon hydrogen capacity, at 84%. This has been facilitated by the relative ease of retrofitting existing grey hydrogen production compared to building out new capacity. Despite blue hydrogen being expected to see a strong growth in capacity until the end of the decade, its growth is forecasted to be outpaced by green hydrogen.
The promise of lower levelized production costs, helped by falling renewable energy prices, has historically spurred interest in green hydrogen. However, green projects continue to face a number of barriers to reaching completion. As a result, oil and gas companies have been exploring blue hydrogen for a number of reasons.
Oil and gas companies have broadly maintained their competitive positioning within the blue hydrogen market. However, there are also examples where there has been a downturn in activity over the past year as corporate strategies shift. Companies such as BP and Shell, have announced the halting or complete cancellation of some blue hydrogen projects as part of a scale back of investments in low-carbon solutions, instead focusing on high-margin projects.
Currently, blue hydrogen accounts for the lion's share of active low-carbon hydrogen capacity, at 84%. This has been facilitated by the relative ease of retrofitting existing grey hydrogen production compared to building out new capacity. Despite blue hydrogen being expected to see a strong growth in capacity until the end of the decade, its growth is forecasted to be outpaced by green hydrogen.
The promise of lower levelized production costs, helped by falling renewable energy prices, has historically spurred interest in green hydrogen. However, green projects continue to face a number of barriers to reaching completion. As a result, oil and gas companies have been exploring blue hydrogen for a number of reasons.
Oil and gas companies have broadly maintained their competitive positioning within the blue hydrogen market. However, there are also examples where there has been a downturn in activity over the past year as corporate strategies shift. Companies such as BP and Shell, have announced the halting or complete cancellation of some blue hydrogen projects as part of a scale back of investments in low-carbon solutions, instead focusing on high-margin projects.
Key Highlights
- Currently, ExxonMobil and Shell are the largest oil and gas participants investing in blue hydrogen projects, with cumulative capacities totaling 952ktpa and 797ktpa, respectively. However, the two companies’ strategies differ with ExxonMobil being involved in a lower volume of projects, with the bulk of its capacity driven by its highly-anticipated Baytown Hydrogen Facility in the US.
Scope
- Global blue hydrogen market outlook
- Largest upcoming blue hydrogen projects involving oil and gas companies
- Key oil and gas players in blue hydrogen
- Key deals in the blue hydrogen market involving oil and gas companies
- Oil and gas companies’ blue hydrogen strategies
Reasons to Buy
- Identify decarbonizing market trends within the oil and gas sector, including the analysis of the strategies that the biggest industry players are implementing.
- Develop market insight of the major technologies and pathways used to decarbonize the industry, including retrofitting existing grey hydrogen facilities with carbon capture, storage, and utilization (CCUS) technologies to produce blue hydrogen.
- Facilitate the understanding of what is predicted to happen in the blue hydrogen market within the next decade and the impact oil and gas players will have on the outcome.
Table of Contents
- Executive Summary
- Blue Hydrogen Outlook
- Global blue hydrogen capacity projections
- Regional breakdown of blue hydrogen
- Largest upcoming blue hydrogen projects
- Key players in blue hydrogen
- Oil and Gas players in blue hydrogen
- Largest blue hydrogen projects involving oil and gas companies
- Capacity scenarios
- Leading oil and gas companies in blue hydrogen
- Intended use sectors
- Key deals regarding oil and gas companies in blue hydrogen
- Oil and gas companies' blue hydrogen strategies
- Recent case studies
- Largest upcoming blue hydrogen projects
- Largest blue hydrogen projects involving oil and gas companies
- Key deals regarding oil and gas companies in blue hydrogen
- Blue hydrogen outlook based on active and upcoming projects 2022-2030
- Regional split of blue hydrogen capacity by development stage based on project announcements 2025 YTD
- Top 5 countries by blue hydrogen capacity 2022-2030
- Leading companies in blue hydrogen production by net capacity as of June 2025
- Capacity scenarios for blue hydrogen projects with oil and gas participants
- Leading oil and gas companies in bluenhydrogen production as of June 2025
- Allocation of oil and gas participants blue hydrogen by end-use sector 2025 YTD
- Allocation of oil and gas participants blue ammonia by end-use sector 2025 YTD
Companies Mentioned (Partial List)
A selection of companies mentioned in this report includes, but is not limited to:
- Shell
- Nutrien
- Air Products and Chemicals
- Qatar Fuel Additives
- BW Group
- Clean Hydrogen Works
- ExxonMobil
- Mitsui OSK Lines
- Equinor
- ThyssenKrupp AG
- Vier Gas Transport
- BP
- Deltalings
- Koninklijke Vopak
- L'Air Liquide
- Port of Rotterdam
- Bakken Energy
- Mitsubishi Heavy Industries
- Atco
- Suncor Energy
- Onyx Power Group
- TransGas Development Systems
- ADNOC
- Linde
- Eni
- Korea Electric Power Corp
- SK Innovation
- Essar Group
- QatarEnergy
- Newpoint Gas
- MMEX Resources
- Inpex
- IMO
- Qatar Fertiliser Company
- Saudi Aramco
- Air Products Qudra
- Topsoe
- Woodside Energy
- OCI Global
- Marubeni
