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When, if ever, will methane hydrates become an economically viable commercial energy source?

Facts
Why It Is Open
Field trials in Japan (2013, 2017), a joint US-Japan trial in Alaska, and a South China Sea trial (2020) have all proven that gas CAN be produced from methane hydrate deposits, but none has run at commercial scale or duration. The US Department of Energy's own account of its Alaska field trial calls the result "proof-of-concept" and "just the beginning," explicitly comparing the remaining path to how long shale gas took to become commercial after its own 1970s-1980s research phase. 1
What Would Resolve This
A named methane hydrate operation delivering gas to market on ordinary commercial terms over a sustained period (not a short field trial), or an authoritative body such as the USGS or a national energy department concluding commercial methane hydrate production is or is not achievable within a stated decade. 1
Discipline Needed
Petroleum and gas-hydrate engineering 1
Question Kind
Mechanism 1
Question Status
Open 1
Reader Facing
Yes 1
Open Question

Field trials in Japan (2013, 2017), a joint US-Japan trial in Alaska, and a South China Sea trial (2020) have all proven that gas CAN be produced from methane hydrate deposits, but none has run at commercial scale or duration. The US Department of Energy's own account of its Alaska field trial calls the result "proof-of-concept" and "just the beginning," explicitly comparing the remaining path to how long shale gas took to become commercial after its own 1970s-1980s research phase.

What would resolve this A named methane hydrate operation delivering gas to market on ordinary commercial terms over a sustained period (not a short field trial), or an authoritative body such as the USGS or a national energy department concluding commercial methane hydrate production is or is not achievable within a stated decade.
OpenPetroleum and gas-hydrate engineeringUnited States Department of Energy Official Site
Connections

Question On

Methane Hydrates, Energy Sources
Source United States Department of Energy Official Site
Sources
1. United States Department of Energy Official Site
US Department of EnergyUS and Japan Complete Successful Field Trial of Methane Hydrate Production TechnologiesView the Source
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