The US remains the world’s largest consumer of natural gas, using around 90 billion cubic feet per day. That figure has grown steadily, underpinned by abundant shale production and the shift away from coal in electricity generation. But the next leg of demand growth is increasingly tied to LNG exports, which are moving from niche to central in the US gas story.
Since 2016, the US has added around 12.7 billion cubic feet per day of LNG export capacity. Another 13.3 billion is scheduled to come online by 2030. If this full pipeline is built and utilised, it could lift total US natural gas demand by roughly 20 billion cubic feet per day, a near 20% increase on today’s levels. That would place material pressure on the domestic gas balance, especially during peak seasons, and could drive new price dynamics in regional hubs.
On the domestic side, power demand is the next major growth lever. Large-scale data centres, new manufacturing facilities, and wider electrification trends are pushing utilities to add gas-fired generation capacity. Forecasts now show around 40 gigawatts of new gas capacity expected by 2030, roughly double what was previously anticipated. That could add another 4.2 billion cubic feet per day to gas demand.
Diversified Energy Company plc (LON:DEC) is an independent energy company engaged in the production, marketing, transportation and retirement of primarily natural gas and natural gas liquids related to its U.S. onshore upstream and midstream assets.
