Natural Gas
Today, because of technological advancements including the combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, America has access to previously unreachable stores of natural gas.
The result? The United States has become the world’s leader in natural gas production and is expected to soon become a net exporter of natural gas, which will not only will help the U.S. economy, but also our allies who want secure, reliable sources of energy.
American natural gas is a solution that has forever altered the world's energy equation by:
- Generating the power we need for our homes and businesses;
- Providing the building blocks for our manufacturing renaissance;
- Making our nation and our allies more secure;
- Propelling the next generation of clean transportation on our roads, oceans and waterways.
Power providers, manufacturing companies, surface and marine fleet operators and millions of small business and home-owners have turned to natural gas to ensure they can get the energy they need, at a price they can afford.
Here's the three big benefits of natural gas.
Natural Gas is clean
Natural gas emits half the CO2 emissions of coal when used to generate electricity. And since 2005, the use of natural gas by power plants that generate electricity has increased dramatically. That's the biggest reason why levels of carbon dioxide in the air are the lowest they have been in nearly 25 years. In fact, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that almost two-thirds of the CO2 emission reductions from 2006 - 2014 came from fuel shifting toward natural gas.
Natural Gas is reliable
The U.S. depends on available electricity, at the flip of a switch, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. For that to happen, electricity supply and demand must always be in balance – at any given moment, there must be as much power supplied to our nation's energy grid as the power being used at any given moment.
That's why all power systems require power generation that can be dispatched 24/7 and that is flexible enough to follow changes in the supply and demand. Natural gas generation can reliably and efficiently meet both needs -- providing dispatchable power at an affordable cost to meet steady predictable demand and providing the flexible and fast-ramping power that is needed to support the grid and keep the lights on when consumers demand electricity and when intermittent resources like wind and solar are not available.
Natural Gas is affordable
More natural gas means affordable natural gas. And America has a lot of natural gas which means long-term stable and affordable prices. To put the amount of natural gas the U.S. has in perspective think about this: In 2015 across every home, business and power plant that used natural gas the United States consumed about 27.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
According to the latest IHS study, there is 800 trillion cubic feet available that can be developed for $3 or less. Even more remarkable? There is twice as much gas or 1,400 trillion cubic feet recoverable for just a dollar more.
These economic and climate benefits can continue to grow with smart governmental policies that allow increased natural gas production and the construction of vital energy infrastructure for delivery.
