What is natural gas?

Natural gas is a combustible gaseous mixture of hydrocarbons, mostly methane. It is produced from wells drilled into underground reservoirs of porous rock. Natural gas withdrawn from the well may contain liquid hydrocarbons and nonhydrocarbon gases. The natural gas is separated from these components near the site of the well or at a natural gas processing plant. The gas is then considered “dry” and is sent through pipelines to a local distribution company, and ultimately, to the consumer. Dry natural gas is also known as consumer-grade natural gas. In addition to natural gas production, the U.S. gas supply is augmented by imports, withdrawals from storage, and by supplemental gaseous fuels.

Most of the natural gas consumed in the United States comes from domestic production. The United States produced 19.1 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of dry natural gas in 2007, which was slightly higher than 2006. The Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico and five States accounted for the majority of the natural gas production in the United States, comprising 77 percent of the total in 2007: Texas (30 percent) Federal Offshore Gulf of Mexico (13 percent) Wyoming (10 percent) Oklahoma (9 percent) New Mexico (8 percent) Louisiana (7 percent) After reaching a peak of 21.7 Tcf in 1973, U.S. dry natural gas production declined to as low as 16.1 Tcf in 1986. One of the reasons for this decline was that gas well productivity peaked in the early 1970's, then fell steeply through the mid-1980s before stabilizing. Between 1986 and 2001, dry natural gas production generally increased, reaching 19.6 Tcf in 2001. Production then dropped to 18.1 Tcf in 2005 before increasing each year through 2007.

Natural Gas Overview, 1973-2007 (Trillion Cubic Feet)

Source: Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review

Natural gas imports

Natural gas net imports in 2007 totaled 3.8 Tcf which is the equivalent of 16 percent of total U.S. natural gas consumed. The majority (82 percent) of those imports came from Canada through pipelines and totaled 3.8 Tcf in 2007.

Liquefied natural gas (LNG)

The second major natural gas import source was from Trinidad on specially designed ships as liquefied natural gas (LNG). LNG is natural gas that is cooled to minus 260 degrees Fahrenheit at which point the gas becomes a liquid. The volume of the liquid is 600 times smaller than the gaseous form. Total 2007 LNG imports were 771 billion cubic feet (bcf).

Natural gas storage

There were 400 active underground storage fields (salt fields, aquifers, or depleted fields) in the United States during 2007. Natural gas is injected into these fields primarily during April through October and withdrawn during November through March. The volume of working gas in storage during 2007 ranged from 1.6 Tcf at the end of March to 3.6 Tcf at the end of October.

Supplemental gas supplies include blast furnace gas, refinery gas, propane-air mixtures, and synthetic natural gas (which are manufactured from petroleum hydrocarbons or from coal) and totaled 63 Billion cubic feet (Bcf) in 2007. The single largest source of synthetic gas is the Great Plains Synfuels Plant in Beulah, North Dakota, where coal is converted to pipeline quality gas.

 

The outlook for U.S. future natural gas supply

Total U.S. natural gas production is projected to grow from 19.1 trillion cubic feet in 2007 to 23.6 trillion cubic feet in 2030, as depletion of the onshore lower 48 conventional resource base is offset by increased production from unconventional sources and from Alaska. Offshore production in the lower 48 states increases from 2.97 trillion cubic feet in 2007 to 4.89 trillion cubic feet in 2030.

Net Imports of Liquefied Natural Gas Grow in the Projection

Net U.S. pipeline imports of natural gas from Canada are projected to decline in the forecast period out to 2030. Most of the expected growth in U.S. natural gas imports is in the form of LNG. Net imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) are projected to grow from .73 trillion cubic feet in 2007 to 1.51 Tcf in 2018 and then decline to .84 Tcf by 2030.

2006 World Natural Gas Production

World production of dry natural gas was dominated by the United States (18.5 Tcf) and Russia (23.2 Tcf), whose combined dry production accounts for about 40 percent of the 104 Tcf produced in 2006.

 

More information on this subject can be found in the following EIA publications:
       Natural Gas Monthly
       Natural Gas Annual
       Monthly Energy Review
       Annual Energy Review
       Annual Energy Outlook
       International Energy Annual
       International Energy Outlook