Global natural gas consumption continues to grow, last year by 2.5%, which is slightly above average, yet U.S. consumption declined. The reasons were due in part to warm weather, but mostly driven by a continuing decline of use by the industrial sector, according to the recently released 56th Annual BP Statistical Review of World Energy. "In the past, gas tended historically to be abundant and relatively cheap in the U.S. That is no longer the case. So gas has generally been losing market share. Here, oil has been gaining market share over the last five to 10 years, largely at the expense of gas," Mark Finley, BP Plc head of energy analysis, told attendees at the James A. Baker Institute in Houston during a presentation of the statistical review. In fact, oil, gas and coal consumption all declined in the U.S. last year. Oil consumption fell 1.3%; gas consumption, 1.7%; and coal consumption, 1.2%. Gas consumption declined for the second year in a row despite an increase in gas used in power generation. Elsewhere in North America, gas consumption increased in Mexico by 13.6% and in Canada by 5.7%. For more on this, see the August issue of Oil and Gas Investor. For a subscription, call 713-260-6441.

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