Posted on 07/20/2011 10:10:14 AM PDT by thackney
The natural gas boom in the U.S. has already started to weaken Russia’s influence on European energy supplies and could counter Iran’s influence as an energy supplier, according to a study released by the Baker Institute at Rice University.
The study, Shale Gas and U.S. National Security, says the expansion of the U.S. natural gas supply due to increased drilling in shale formations will have an impact on global supply for years to come as the need for the U.S. to import the gas in the form of liquefied natural gas, or LNG, will be limited for at least 20 to 30 years.
That means more LNG shipments from the Middle East will be available for Europe, which has been beholden to Russia for a large portion of its gas, which is supplied by pipelines.
The study, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, predicts that Russia’s share of the natural gas market in Western Europe will drop from 27 percent in 2009 to as little as 13 percent by 2040.
“By increasing alternative supplies to Europe in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG) displaced from the U.S. market, the petro-power of Russia, Venezuela and Iran is faltering on the back of plentiful American natural gas supply,” said Amy Myers Jaffe, a fellow at the Baker Institute and one of the authors of the study.
The Baker Institute has been following the global natural gas market for years, having written on the topic in the past.
The study also counters the notion that the U.S. natural gas shale is a short-lived phenomena, as has been alleged in a series of recent New York Times articles. It concludes U.S. natural gas production will will more than quadruple from 2010 to 2040 and account for more than half of all U.S. gas production by the 2030s.
“The idea that shale gas is a flash-in-the-pan is simply incorrect,” said Kenneth Medlock III, also at fellow and the Baker Institute and a co-author of the study. “The geologic data on the shale resource is hard science and the innovations that have occurred in the field to make this resource accessible are nothing short of game-changing.”
Other findings of the study:
Less competition for LNG supplies from the Middle East will moderate prices, spur greater use of natural gas.
Lower natural gas costs means a lower cost of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. and overseas.
Lower LNG prices counters the long-term potential monopoly power of a “gas OPEC.”
Reduced U.S. and Chinese dependence on Middle East natural gas supplies lowers the incentives for geopolitical and commercial competition between the two largest consuming countries.
Reduce Iran’s ability to use energy diplomacy to strengthen its regional power or buttress its nuclear aspirations.
excellent.
Then by all means let’s stop it!
Anything that helps America is bad for the American President and his gang of marxist thugs.
C’mon, people! Where should our true loyalties lie???
Just damn! Teh One is going to have to get on top of this one and fix the problem ASAP. A quick call to the EPA with instructions to shut down shale drilling should do it.
Yes, you are quite right. if the socialists are going to stop this, they are going to have to move lickety split. I am really enjoying the development of this shale o&g...my hope/belief is that it is simply too big, and moving too fast for these commies to stop!
Go America!
“Yes, you are quite right. if the socialists are going to stop this, they are going to have to move lickety split.”
The socialists will be the “concerned people” with a list of grievances. The heading on top of the list...”My Imaginary and Made up Crap Concerns”.
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