American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, Inc.
This paper briefly reviews the significance of the gas industry as an indispensable source of energy for each of the residential, commercial and industrial sectors. It discusses the nature of the energy/natural gas shortage and its causes. The basic reason for the shortage is almost universally conceded to be the misapplication of federal regulation of the wellhead price of gas, but impeding solutions to the problem are misconceptions as to the feasibility of alternatives. Specifically, there has been unwarranted reliance on conservation, overly optimistic expectations with respect to "exotics", and apparent bias, on the part of some government decision makers, toward "all electric". Also discussed are factors that will affect future trends in fuel usage, the importance and availability of natural gas supplementals, the economic impact of an extended severe gas shortage, the need for increased new gas exploration, and the case for deregulation, including its economic impact on the consumer. This paper concludes that there must be a national imperative for a continuity of our gaseous fuel supply.
Natural gas remains the least understood of all of our energy sources. We became dependent upon it almost overnight after WW II because of its sudden abundance at low cost, and because of its premium qualities of cleanliness, versatility and efficiency.
Today people are frankly surprised when they finally come to understand the pervasive ross of its use. Natural gas and its related supplementals provide over 31 percent of the primary energy used in the United States; over primary energy used in the United States; over 41 percent of the nontransportation energy used; more primary energy than any other source produced domestically (41 percent gas, 30 produced domestically (41 percent gas, 30 percent oil, and 23 percent coal); 17 percent percent oil, and 23 percent coal); 17 percent of our national electric power generation; nearly 50 percent of all industrial energy; and 42 percent of the residential and commercial market. Natural gas heats 39.4 million homes and 56 percent of all dwellings. It is the largest single fuel source for the residential, commercial, and industrial markets.
