According to Oil and Gas Journal, the UAE’s proven natural gas reserves were 214.4 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) as of January 1, 2009. The UAE holds the sixth largest proven natural gas reserves in the world after Russia, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United States. The largest reserves of 198.5 Tcf are located in Abu Dhabi. Sharjah, Dubai, and Ras al-Khaimah contain smaller reserves of 10.7 Tcf, 4.0 Tcf, and 1.2 Tcf, respectively.

In 2008, the UAE produced 1.77 Tcf and consumed 2.1 Tcf of dry gas. The UAE became a net natural gas importer in 2007, as consumption has grown much faster than production. Increased domestic demand for electricity, the desalinization of water, growing demand from the petrochemical industry, and the need for an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) system based on natural gas injections in mature oil fields have caused the UAE's domestic demand for natural gas to rise.

Rising domestic demand has put a new focus on developing the UAE’s large natural gas reserves despite high extraction costs and sulfur content. GASCO has awarded contracts for a number of large-scale gas projects in the past few months, following the push to develop several large-scale oil projects earlier in 2009, which opened up the development of associated gas production.

According to Global Insight, the largest new natural gas project is at onshore Habshan gas field, where phase 3 of the gas development project includes increasing production by 1 to 1.3 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of gas, along with new natural gas liquid (NGL) and condensate production facilities, and a 68-mile NGL pipeline to Ruwais, where new processing facilities will be added.

Abu Dhabi's Asab-3 project aims to increase oil and gas production from the Asab, Shah, and Sahil oil fields. France's Technip won an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract in November 2009. The company aims to produce about 150 million cubic feet per day MMcf/d) of additional associated gas from the project when it is completed in the third quarter of 2012.

The Shah Project joint venture contract between ADNOC and ConocoPhillips was signed in July 2009. This large-scale project involves the development of sour natural gas and condensate reservoirs within the Shah gas field located southwest of the city of Abu Dhabi, including the construction of gas gathering systems, gas processing trains and product pipelines designed to produce, process and transport 1 Bcf/d of gas, plus associated liquids and sulfur, by 2013. The Shah Project will reportedly include one of the largest sulfur removal plants in the world and an exporting facility to be located in Ruwais Industrial City.

According to EIA estimates, the UAE had gross imports of 592 Bcf and gross exports of 267 Bcf of natural gas in 2008. Net natural gas imports amounted to about 280 Bcf, imported mainly from Qatar. Exports, in the form of LNG, were shipped to Asian countries, primarily to Japan.

The UAE set up its first LNG plant in 1977 on Das Island operated by ADGAS. The plant is run on associated natural gas from the Um Shaif, Lower Zakum, and Bunduq oil fields. UAE natural gas exports are managed by ADNOC subsidiary, Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Co. (ADGAS). The National Gas Shipping Company (NGSCO), which operates 8 LNG carriers, handles the shipments from the LNG plant.

The Dolphin natural gas pipeline project linking Qatar, the UAE, and Oman is the first cross border natural gas pipeline in the Gulf Arab region. Natural gas is imported from Qatar’s North Field to Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Fujairah in the UAE, and then on to Oman. The managing company, UAE's Mubadala Development Company, holds a 51-percent stake in Dolphin Energy, with France's Total and U.S. Occidental Petroleum at 24.5 percent each. The project will carry about 2 Bcf/d of natural gas from Qatar to the UAE and Oman. The project consists of a 48-inch subsea export pipeline running 226 miles from Qatar to Dolphin's facilities at Taweelah, Abu Dhabi, where the first natural gas imports were received in July 2007. From Taweelah, a 152-mile pipeline runs to the Qidfa Water and Electricity Station in Fujairah. Construction on this line will be completed by third-quarter 2010.

From Fujairah, natural gas is piped to Oman by an existing pipeline. Since January 2004, Oman had been supplying Dolphin Energy with pipeline gas for use at the Qidfa plant as a stopgap measure until Dolphin was ready to take over supplying the plant. The pipeline linking the UAE and Oman was reversed in October 2008, with Dolphin reportedly supplying Oman with 200,000 cubic feet per day to help cover shortages in the sultanate.