Full Title: Got Growth? Defining US Gas Utility Growth in an Era of Efficiency and Natural Gas Resource Abundance
Author(s): American Gas Association
Publisher(s): American Gas Association
Publication Date: September 1, 2015
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):
Natural gas consumption in the United States is growing. In fact, there are many ways to define and recognize local gas utility core market growth as part of this national phenomenon. Clear and well defined data show that natural gas customer counts and other measures have grown significantly over recent decades.
- More homes and businesses use natural gas today than ever before and the numbers continue to increase.
- Infrastructure has also expanded as gas utilities have grown the geographic footprint of natural gas service.
- Dollar contributions to innovative energy efficiency programs have increased, consistently, and now support about $1.1 billion in annual investments for commercial building and home applications.
- Companies and regulators are recognizing the growth potential for natural gas as a greenhouse gas emissions reduction tool.
- Local gas utilities also support conversions from heating oil, propane and electricity, which may lower consumer costs, while reducing energy consumption and emissions.
Natural gas demand is growing rapidly in other sectors as well. Volumes for gas-fired power generation have surged in recent years and the large-volume industrial sector has increased consumption, also – all supported by an enormous natural gas resource endowment, production efficiencies and growing infrastructure. Many analysts believe that additions to US gas demand for the next 25 years may continue to come primarily from these sectors, as well as the natural gas export market.With that said, much of this new natural gas demand may bypass local gas utilities. A fair question emerges from this reality – are natural gas utilities growing, and if they are, will they continue to do so? What of core local gas customers (primarily residential and small commercial natural gas users) and what metrics are appropriate for discerning both past and future growth potential in smaller-volume gas applications?