The State of America’s Natural Gas Utilities is Strong

Washington, D.C. – The American Gas Association released its 2022 Playbook today, bringing much needed clarity to the debate about our energy future in the U.S. Nearly 187 million Americans and 5.5 million businesses use natural gas because it is affordable, reliable, safe and essential to improving our environment.

America’s natural gas utilities are innovative and committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through new and modernized infrastructure and advanced technologies that maintain reliable, resilient and affordable energy service choices for consumers.

“There is a critical conversation taking place in the United States about our energy future and we owe it to the American people, more than half of whom use natural gas in their homes, to have an honest, fact-based discussion,” said AGA President and CEO Karen Harbert. “With the devastating war underway in Ukraine and disruption to Europe’s energy markets, natural gas prices for America’s homeowners and businesses remain stable. We see gasoline prices jumping, continued inflation looming and cold weather bearing down, but our domestic supply of natural gas is keeping Americans warm and bills affordable. Our nation’s domestic supply of natural gas and reliable delivery system provide stability and certainty for Americans and insulate us from chaos and volatility across the globe.”

Natural Gas is Affordable: Households that use natural gas for heating, cooking and clothes drying save an average of $1,041 per year compared to homes using electricity for those applications, an 18% increase since the publication of the 2021 AGA Playbook.

Natural Gas is Reliable: Unplanned outages affect about 1 in 800 natural gas customers per year while electric distribution systems have an average of one outage per year per customer.

Natural Gas is Essential to Improving Our Environment: Emissions from the natural gas distribution system have declined 69 percent since 1990. Natural gas efficiency and the growth of renewable energy have led to energy related carbon dioxide emissions hitting 30-year lows.

America’s Natural Gas Utilities are Innovative, investing $125 million to advance low- and zero carbon energy technologies and reduce emissions. There are nearly 500 RNG facilities in operation or planned in North America today, most of which are connected to the natural gas delivery system. There are more than 25 states or provinces where utilities are actively engaged in hydrogen research, testing or projects.

On February 8, AGA released a bold vision for the future along with a seminal analysis detailing how America’s natural gas, natural gas utilities and delivery infrastructure will be essential to meeting our nation’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals, including achieving net-zero emissions.

 “We are seeing, in real time, the disastrous alternative to not investing in natural gas,” Harbert said. “Natural gas customers in Europe have paid as high as the equivalent of $43 per MMbtu because they turned their backs on natural gas and the delivery infrastructure. As outlined in the 2022 AGA Playbook, natural gas is projected to be 1/2 to 1/3 the price of other fuels through 2050. That is a foundation we can build on to double-down on our shared goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and making sure our customers and communities have safe and affordable energy every single day.”

“As President Biden prepares to make his State of the Union remarks tonight, there is no question that energy security for our nation and across the globe is something that cannot go without mention. This industry stands ready to work with the President, his Administration and the U.S. Congress to continue to advance our strong energy position at home and help ensure the benefits of our robust natural gas supplies can expand and support global stability.”

You can read the entire 2022 AGA Playbook at playbook.aga.org.