In 1973, while a graduate student at Penn State, I wrote a paper entitled “The Use of Natural Gas in Improving Air Quality.” My professor, Richard Gordon, a terrific economist who greatly influenced my thinking about energy, liked the paper but thought I was too optimistic about the availability of natural gas. The sense at the time was that natural gas was a premium energy source in short supply.
Fast forward to 2010. Another Penn State professor, Terry Englander, estimates recoverable natural gas resources of 500 tcf for the Marcellus shale alone. Annual gas consumption for the entire US is only about 23 tcf. The whole world consumed about 113 tcf in 2008.
Dan Yergin is calling it the natural gas revolution. Boone Pickens has called the US the “Saudi Arabia of natural gas.” In addition to the shale gas, we have huge Alaskan gas reserves awaiting a pipeline (the economic viability of which may be threatened by the major discoveries in the lower 48). Prospects for ultra-deep gas in the Gulf of Mexico are also looking brighter in the wake of McMoRans major deep gas discovery. There is excellent natural gas potential in the eastern Gulf near major gas markets, and at least one Atlantic state (Virginia) has expressed interest in renewed exploration in the Atlantic.
Given the dearth of good economic news, why isn’t more attention being given to this natural gas bonanza? Boone Pickens and others are doing their part, but there should be a national dialogue on how we can use these resources to improve our economy, energy security, and the environment.
How about a parade down Constitution Avenue to celebrate our good fortune?
Celebrating the Natural Gas Revolution?
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Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 