Natural Gas Locally, Natural Gas Globally
John Felmy
Posted January 20, 2011
If you are like me, good news is always appreciated, so I'll give you a double-dose today, first up Mark Perry at Carpe Diem:
"According to data from the EIA, more natural gas produced was produced in October - 2,330,551 million cubic feet - than in any previous month in U.S. history...As John Tierney reported recently in the New York Times: "The really good news is the discovery of vast quantities of natural gas. It's now selling for less than half of what it was five years ago. There's so much available that the Energy Department is predicting low prices for gas and electricity for the next quarter-century."
And it's not just in the U.S. -- over to the IEA:
"Supplies of natural gas could last more than 250 years if Asian and European economies follow the U.S. unconventional reserves, the IEA said. The abundance of shale gas and other forms of so-called unconventional gas discovered in the United States prompted a global rush to explore for the new resource...Global supplies of natural gas could last for another 130 years at current consumption rates. That time frame could double with unconventional gas, the IEA said.
Last October, in a look at energy and poverty, the IEA determined that:
"Access to modern forms of energy is essential for the provision of clean water, sanitation and healthcare and provides great benefits to development through the provision of reliable and efficient lighting, heating, cooking, mechanical power, transport and telecommunication services.
We are pleased the U.S. oil and natural gas industry is leading the way in fighting poverty through the development of new technologies to supply the world with inexpensive modern energy (and quite a few jobs to boot) -- now we just need to be able to do the work without adding unnecessary and burdensome regulations.