A plasma process for methane conversion into acetylene is proposed. Acetylene is one of the basic materials used in the chemical industry and its production is predominantly based on chemical processing of naphtha and CaC2. The recent increase in shale gas production makes acetylene production from methane a feasible expectation. This study provides data on the lowest cost of acetylene production from methane by a plasma process. The proposed plasma process is based on an effective rotating arc reactor. The rotating arc provides a relatively low reaction temperature, achieving a high carbon balance. Through a study of reaction parameters and the effect of H-2 as a reactant additive, the mechanism of methane conversion was analyzed. The proposed process showed a high efficiency with a minimum process cost of approximately 9 kWh/kg-C2H2. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.