Energy Security
Posted at 12:02pm on Jun. 14, 2008 Natural Gas Production Surges: A Free Market at Work
By Vladimir
Natural gas currently accounts for about 23% of the nation's total energy use, about the same amount as coal. Unlike oil, we must be (mostly) self-sufficient in natural gas. It can be difficult and expensive to import in tankers; failing that, our only external sources are Canada and Mexico. Canada is finding more internal use for gas in the tar sand extraction process, and we actually export a minor amount of gas to Mexico.
[M]ore than half of the increase in natural gas production between the first quarter of 2007 and the first quarter of 2008 came from Texas, where supplies grew by an exceptionally high 15%. Other contributing regions included Wyoming with growth of 9%, Oklahoma with 6% growth, and Louisiana with 4% growth.
Natural gas production had been flat, around 52 billion cubic feet per day (BCFD), for many years through 2006. However, the last couple of years have seen an impressive surge in natural gas production, driven by several factors: strong gas prices, aggressive operators, and new technologies that enable gas production from rocks that have never before been considered commercially productive, the dense sedimentary rock known as shale.
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