These Five States Produced 70% of U.S. Natural Gas Last Year

By Charles Kennedy - Dec 10, 2024  oilprice.com

Just five states produced more than 70% of the record U.S. natural gas marketed output last year, with Texas accounting for over one-fourth, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Tuesday.

The U.S. produced a record-breaking 113.1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) natural gas volumes in 2023.

Texas accounted for 28% of all gas production last year, followed by Pennsylvania, Louisiana, West Virginia, and New Mexico, according to the EIA’s Natural Gas Monthly publications.

Pennsylvania’s share of U.S. natural gas production was at 18%, Louisiana accounted for 10% of all output, West Virginia had a share of 8%, and New Mexico also held an 8% share.

Thanks to the Permian and the Haynesville shale plays, Texas leads U.S. natural gas production. Pennsylvania and West Virginia in the Appalachian basin rely on the Marcellus and Utica shale gas plays, while output in Louisiana comes from Haynesville and from offshore production in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico.

U.S. natural gas production growth has slowed in 2024, due to an oversupply on the market. But output from these five states continued to make up most of marketed U.S. natural gas this year, at 73%, according to the EIA’s estimates.

U.S. natural gas inventories are higher than average for this time of the year as America has entered the proper winter heating season with stocks at their highest level since 2016, the EIA said earlier this month.

As a result of the lower natural gas prices due to high inventories and a mild 2023/2024 winter, U.S. natural gas producers curtailed some production in the spring.

Earlier this year, when the prices hit multi-year lows at the end of the winter and early spring, U.S. producers and pipeline operators acknowledged there was an oversupply hanging over the market. Despite that, producers believe that gas will continue to be in demand domestically and internationally for decades to come.