Baker Hughes Takes a Stake in Synthetic Natural Gas Startup

Vincent Mundy/Bloomberg News
Vincent Mundy/Bloomberg News

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Baker Hughes is taking a 15% stake in a startup that aims to produce natural gas from hydrogen and carbon dioxide, the oil field service company’s latest move to invest in technology designed to capture emissions.

Houston-based Baker Hughes is investing in Electrochaea GmbH, a German company developing a process to make so-called synthetic natural gas from carbon dioxide and from hydrogen produced using renewable energy, according to a statement. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. The CO2 can be derived from sources including industrial plants and the breakdown of organic matter.

The investment is the latest example of an oil field service provider backing technology intended to address concerns about greenhouse gas emissions. Earlier this month, Baker Hughes announced plans to develop a hub in Norway to capture and store CO2.



Baker Hughes and Electrochaea technology “provides an integrated method to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors such as road transportation and heating,” Rod Christie, executive vice president of turbomachinery and process solutions at Baker Hughes, said in the statement. With its investment, Baker Hughes will get a seat on Electrochaea’s board.

Baker Hughes ranks No. 66 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest private carriers in North America.

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