US energy regulator cites urgent need for natgas

24 July 2007 20:51  [Source: ICIS news]

WASHINGTON (ICIS news)--A top federal energy regulator said on Tuesday there is an urgent need for more access to and development of US domestic natural gas resources and major investments in gas infrastructure.

 

Philip Moeller, one of five commissioners on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), said the US must develop all available natural gas resources.

 

“We need more natural gas from every source possible, including onshore, offshore, Alaska and LNG,” he said, referring in the latter to more imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

 

The US chemicals industry is dependent on natural gas as its principal feedstock.

 

Speaking to a gas industry meeting, Moeller said the US also needs to accelerate gas infrastructure development. “We need a lot more infrastructure, and in natural gas that means more pipelines and more LNG terminals,” he said.

 

“This is a matter of great urgency. This is catch-up time,” Moeller said.

 

He said that as uncertainty continues over how the US Congress will approach global warming issues, it is likely that “natural gas will continue to be the shoulder that power generators will lean on for some time to come”. 

 

With demand on gas as a fuel for electricity generation as well as industrial and consumer uses, Moeller said that “gas prices will stay high for a while”.

 

He said he could not offer a prediction on whether Congress will authorise more access to US offshore gas reserves.

 

However, he said, “I hope that as Congress debates this issue, there will be a good discussion of the cost versus benefit of limiting access to our gas supplies”.

 

Congress has maintained a moratorium for 26 years on drilling in 85% of resource-rich US offshore areas.

 

“We can continue to keep gas supplies off limits, but we must understand that that decision will impact the lives of generations,” Moeller said.

 

“So I hope that there is a thorough discussion of the costs and benefits of restricting access to gas supplies,” he said. “The simple fact is that we need more gas.”

By: Joe Kamalick
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