For the first time since 1957, U.S. exports of natural gas surpassed imports, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported in March. A swift ramp-up of new facilities and LNG export terminals coming online will almost triple U.S. liquefaction capacity by the end of 2019.

However, LNG exports will face a global market, as other countries are increasing their own gas production. Here is a rundown of where other regions stand with respect to gas production.

Global dry gas production growth has been slowed down by the industry downturn in the past several years. However, the output has been continuously increasing, except for a slight drop in 2016 caused by Russia and the CIS area. The growth trend resumed in 2017 and Stratas Advisors forecasts that global production will gradually climb to around 480 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) by 2030.

North America and Russia and CIS together account for about half of the global production.

Total gas output in Africa was stable between 18- and 19 Bcf/d from 2011 to 2016. Production in 2017 increased to more than 20 Bcf/d, driven by strong growth in Egypt and Angola. Algeria, Egypt and Nigeria remain the top three gas producers in Africa. Regional production is projected to sharply increase to more than 35 Bcf/d by 2030, propelled by robust gas development offshore Tanzania and Mozambique as well as in Egypt.

Dry gas production in Asia Pacific rose from 44 Bcf/d in 2011 to almost 55 Bcf/d in 2017. China, Australia, Indonesia and Malaysia together contributed about 70% of total production. Gas production will continue to ramp up in the coming years driven by strong growth in Australia and China. Big LNG projects such as Great Western Flank, Ichthys and Wheatstone will drive Australian gas production up to 15 Bcf/d by 2020.

China is expected to reach 15 Bcf/d by 2018, driven by the giant Changqing gas field and shale gas development in the southwestern Sichuan Basin. Regional dry gas production will reach almost 76 Bcf/d by 2030. China and Australia will remain the leading gas producing countries in the region.

In Europe, dry gas production dropped from about 27 Bcf/d in 2014 to 23 Bcf/d in 2017, mainly due to the plunge in non-major producing countries. Norway is currently the largest gas producer in Europe, pumping nearly 12 Bcf/d in 2017. For the forecasting period, Europe’s gas production will first stabilize between 23- and 24 Bcf/d in the short term, then gradually decline and reach around 21 Bcf/d by 2030.

Latin American dry gas production totaled about 20 Bcf/d in 2016. Argentina, Mexico and Trinidad and Tobago are the top three producers, accounting for over half of regional output during the past few years. Production in Latin America is projected to continue growing in the long term and reach 27.5 Bcf/d by 2030. Argentina has the potential to become the largest gas producer in the region due to its Vaca Muerta shale development projects.

Dry gas production in the Middle East was about 53 Bcf/d in 2016. Iran and Qatar are currently the top gas producers in this region. Iranian gas mostly comes from South Pars Field while gas output in Qatar mainly comes from the giant North Field. Other major gas producing countries include Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman. Total gas output in the Middle East is projected to ramp up to about 85 Bcf/d by 2030.

North American (U.S. and Canada) dry gas production was about 87 Bcf/d in 2017, slightly down from 88 Bcf/d in 2016, reflecting the low oil price impact on U.S. shale development. The U.S. contributed the majority (more than 80% from 2011 to 2017) of production in North America. Regional gas output is expected to ramp up in the medium to long term and reach more than 125 Bcf/d by 2030.

In Russia and the CIS, dry gas output fluctuated from 52- to 65 Bcf/d during the past five years, mainly caused by unstable dry gas output in Russia, which is currently the largest gas producer in the CIS region, pumping more than 50 Bcf/d of dry gas. Turkmenistan is the second largest, producing more than 10 Bcf/d in 2017. In Stratas’ forecast, regional dry gas output will ramp up in the medium to long term to eventually reach around 110 Bcf/d by 2030. Russia will remain the dominant gas producer in this region with its daily output surpassing 80 Bcf by 2030. Turkmenistan is expected to boost production to around 20 Bcf/d by 2030. Other dry gas producing countries in this region include Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

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