Renowned energy transition leader Frank Wouters has unveiled to the Al-Attiyah Foundation what he believes could be the next great leap in clean energy—one with the potential to accelerate the journey to net zero emissions by 2050.

In the latest episode of the Foundation’s podcast, Wouters spotlights methane pyrolysis—a process that generates hydrogen without CO₂ emissions while turning waste carbon into a valuable resource. He explains how this approach could soon surpass both electrolysis and traditional steam methane reforming as the most efficient and climate-friendly route to hydrogen. “Pyrolysis produces hydrogen and solid carbon. Whereas methane reforming produces hydrogen and CO₂—so pyrolysis is by nature cleaner,” Wouters said.

Drawing on a career that spans from solar electrification projects in Uganda to leading strategic investments in the London Array and Shams concentrated solar plant, he describes a technology that’s both technically advanced and surprisingly close to commercial viability. Plasma-based systems, for example, can crack methane at temperatures of up to 1,000 degrees Celsius without using catalysts. “Then you don’t have all the issues associated with catalytic materials,” he says. Molten metal reactors, microwave systems, and nickel-based catalytic beds all offer alternative pathways—with varying levels of cost, complexity, and scalability.

Crucially, this is not just theory. He points to Monolith’s Olive Creek facility in Nebraska, which has been producing hydrogen and carbon black for nearly a decade, with backing from industrial giants like Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and SK. BASF, too, has operated a methane pyrolysis prototype in Germany for several years.

What sets pyrolysis apart isn’t just its emissions profile—it’s the value of what’s left behind. Depending on the process, the resulting carbon can be refined into materials used in tyres, plastics, electronics, medicine, and agriculture. “Carbon will be used and will be required to do soil improvement,” Wouters noted, referencing growing interest in regenerative farming applications.

He continued: “Methane pyrolysis is an endothermic process, requiring high-temperature heat to drive the reaction. Producing 1 kg of hydrogen takes about 7 kWh—far less than the 50–60 kWh needed for water electrolysis.”

Hydrogen is already essential across sectors—from refining and fertiliser production to steelmaking, heavy transport, and energy storage—and demand is only projected to grow.

Listen to the full episode on the Al-Attiyah Foundation’s website.