Dispatch
MIT Tech Review on geologic hydrogen: trillions of tons underground, and one Ontario mine leaking 140 tons a year
The Aug 17 feature reports the USGS conclusion that trillions of tons of H2 are generated within Earth's crust, enough that recovering a small fraction could meet global demand for centuries. Measured flows are real but small: about 140 metric tons a year across 14,000+ boreholes at Kidd Creek in Ontario, at least 200 tons a year at Albania's Bulqizë chromium mine, and an Oman test that produced 90%-hydrogen gas after injecting 50,000 cubic meters of water into reactive rock. HyTerra and Bill Gates-backed Koloma are drilling the US Midwest; the open question is commercial viability, not existence — which matters given how much of the AI datacenter buildout is now an energy-sourcing problem.
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