Business View - December 2014 15
ell: More than
pport Natural
as Expansion
UOP technology, equipment and materials remove
contaminants from raw natural gas to help prepare it
for safe transport worldwide. It also recovers natural
gas liquids such as ethane and propane that are used
to make plastics and other petrochemical compounds.
Erica Bowman, vice president of research and pol-
icy analysis for America's Natural Gas Alliance, said,
"Americans understand the benefits of natural gas
and support greater access to this clean and abun-
dant domestic resource. It's encouraging to see that
people by and large know that natural gas offers intrin-
sic environmental and economic benefits."
Among the other findings of the survey:
When asked about the two most appealing reasons
to use natural gas, respondents most frequently said
that it reduces energy dependence on other countries
(48 percent), while more than one-third (35 percent)
agreed that it costs less than other sources of energy
fuels. Nearly one-third (30 percent) said it is better for
the environment than other energy fuels. Almost one
quarter (23 percent) said it is more abundant and ac-
cessible than other fuels, and nearly one-fifth (19 per-
cent) said creates jobs and powers economic growth.
Nearly 6 in 10 (57 percent) of respondents said that
natural gas is the most cost-effective way to heat
homes, eclipsing electricity (20 percent), wood stoves
(19 percent) and fuel oil (3 percent).
Across all categories, interest in using natural gas out-
paces current usage. A majority of adults report being
very interested or somewhat interested in natural gas
for either heating the home (63 percent) or for cooking
(58 percent). Nearly half (46 percent) report interest
in acquiring a natural gas-powered clothes dryer, while
more than one-third indicate interest in natural gas for
a BBQ hook-up (40 percent) or to power a car or ve-
hicle (36 percent). The greatest interest in new uses
for natural gas comes from people who already use it.
Currently, 6 in 10 adults report they use natural gas
for at least one household task, with home heating the
most common at 49 percent. Nearly 4 in 10 (37 per-
cent) report using natural gas for cooking, with either
a stove or oven. One-fourth (24 percent) report using
natural gas for a clothes dryer, and 1 in 10 (11 per-
cent) use it as barbecue hook-up.
Natural gas consumption has risen every year in the
U.S., from 19.2 trillion cubic feet (tcf) in 1990 to 26.1
tcf last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA). Today more than 60 percent of
U.S. residences use natural gas, rising from 50.2 mil-
lion households in 1990 to nearly 67 million in 2013.
Meanwhile, the average residential price of natural
gas has fallen steadily since peaking in July of 2008,
according to the EIA.
