First gas extraction from methane hydrate

A Japanese energy explorer said on Tuesday it extracted gas from offshore methane hydrate deposits for the first time in the world, as part of an attempt to achieve commercial production within six years. (Reuters)

Methan hydrate is an interesting source of energy, due to its high energy density: one cubic meter of combustible ice contains about 164 cubic meters of regular natural gas. Countries like China, Us and Russia have been running technology innovation programmes in the last years for their ambitious plans of methane hydrate deposits exploitation. But Japan wins the race. Read more on Phys.org.