Gas

EIA: US natural gas consumption for generation continues to grow

The 1% increase in natural gas consumption in 2023 was driven by a 6.7% increase in consumption by the electric power sector.
EIA: US natural gas consumption for generation continues to grow
(The Braunig natural gas-fired units. Photo source: CPS Energy.)

U.S. natural gas consumption grew by 1% to reach a new annual high of 89.4 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2023 and continued to grow in the first nine months of 2024, according to the EIA’s Natural Gas Annual (NGA).

The 1% increase in natural gas consumption in 2023 was driven by a 6.7% (2.2 Bcf/d) increase in consumption in the electric power sector, the largest natural gas consuming sector, EIA said. U.S. consumption of natural gas for power generation averaged 35.4 Bcf/d, or 40% of U.S. natural gas consumed in 2023.

On the other hand, natural gas consumption in the residential sector reached a five-year low at an average 12.4 Bcf/d in 2023, down by 8.9% (1.2 Bcf/d) from 2022, the largest year-over-year decline in the past five years. Natural gas consumption in the commercial sector decreased 4.8% (0.5 Bcf/d).

The summer of 2023 was the hottest recorded in the Northern Hemisphere, increasing consumption of natural gas in the electric power sector to meet demand for air conditioning, EIA said. Additionally, “warmer-than-normal” temperatures in January and February 2023 resulted in less demand for space heating in the residential and commercial sectors than in the past five years and reduced growth in total natural gas consumption in 2023 compared with 2022.

The natural gas consumption trends observed in 2023 largely continued in 2024 through September, EIA said. U.S. natural gas consumption through September 2024 averaged 89.8 Bcf/d, according to EIA’s monthly data, up 1% from the same period in 2023. The increase was driven by a 4% (1.6 Bcf/d) increase in consumption in the electric power sector, which averaged 38.1 Bcf/d, or 42% of U.S. natural gas consumed in 2024 through September.

Earlier this year, EIA predicted a 2% increase (35 BkWh) in natural gas generation in 2024. The increase was driven by low fuel costs and higher overall electricity demand, EIA said. A few new combined-cycle plants have come online in the past year, but the new capacity has been offset by other plants’ retirements, EIA added. Natural gas generation in 2024 is increasing the most in the Midwest (up 11 BkWh) and in the Mid-Atlantic (up 9 BkWh). The agency expects less natural gas generation in California this year (down 6 BkWh) and in the Southwest (down 2 BkWh), in response to large increases in solar generation.

On July 9, 2024, U.S. power plant operators generated 6.9 million MWh of electricity from natural gas on a daily basis in the lower 48 states, EIA said, which was “probably” the most in history, and definitely the most since at least January 1, 2019, when the EIA began to collect hourly data about natural gas generation.

The spike in natural gas-fired generation on July 9 was because of both high temperatures across most of the country and a steep drop in wind generation. According to the National Weather Service, most of the U.S. experienced temperatures well above average on July 9, 2024, with particularly high temperatures on the West Coast and East Coast.

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