Can Natural Gas help US decrease pollution?
The rest of the world is demanding that the US, China and other developed nations decrease their pollution in an attempt to slow global warming. An unlikely source of energy has emerged to meet international demands that the United States do more to fight global warming: natural gas. It is cleaner than coal, cheaper than oil and we have a massive supply right here.
The same fossil fuel that was in such short supply a decade ago is now being uncovered at such a rapid pace that its price is near a seven year low. Long used to heat half the nation's homes, it's becoming the fuel of choice when building new power plants. Someday, it may win wider acceptance as a replacement for gasoline in our cars and trucks.
Utilities in the US aren't waiting for Washington to jump on the gas bandwagon. Looming climate legislation has altered the calculus that they use to determine the cheapest way to deliver power. Coal may still be cheaper, but natural gas emits half as much carbon when burned to generate the same amount of electricity.
The world's largest oil company, Exxon Mobil Corp., entered the sector in a big way last Monday when it announced a $30 billion deal to acquire XTO Energy Inc. The move will make it the country's top producer of natural gas. Exxon expects to be able to dramatically boost natural gas sales to electric utilities. In fact, CEO Rex Tillerson says that's why the deal is such a smart investment.
XTO, the company that Exxon is buying, was one of the pioneers in developing new drilling technologies that allow a single well to descend 9,000 feet and then bore horizontally through shale formations up to 1 1/2 miles away. Water, sand and chemical additives are pumped through these pipes to unlock trillions of cubic feet of natural gas that until recently had been judged unobtainable.
Even with the big increases in reserves they were logging, expansion plans by XTO and its rivals were limited by the debt they took on to finance these projects that can cost as much as $3 million apiece. Under Exxon, which earned $45.2 billion last year, that barrier has been obliterated.
So look for the United States to move towards natural gas in the future. A move that will not only be good for the country, but also better for the environment.
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