Executive Summary

This history traces humanity’s evolving relationship with natural gas—from mystery and worship, through scientific discovery and industrial application, to today’s sophisticated extraction technologies and geopolitical significance.

The transformation of natural gas from sacred phenomenon to global commodity spans three millennia and crosses every inhabited continent: Ancient Greeks built their most powerful oracle upon natural gas seepages; Chinese engineers developed sophisticated extraction and pipeline technologies centuries before the West; Victorian inventors learned to harness gas for illumination; American entrepreneurs created vast pipeline networks; Modern fracturing techniques unlocked reserves that reshaped global energy politics.

This is the story of how humanity discovered, understood, and ultimately mastered one of nature’s most versatile energy sources—and how that mastery continues to shape geopolitics, economics, and the future of energy itself.

Introduction

Natural gas generates electricity for millions and fuels the fertilizer production that feeds half the world’s population. Yet, for most of human history, this colorless, odorless hydrocarbon was known only as an inexplicable mystery—eternal flames erupting from mountainsides, vapors emerging from cracks in temple floors, and ghostly fires that could burn for centuries without consuming any visible fuel.

Natural gas—discovered by accident, understood through science, and weaponized by nations—occupies a singular position in human civilization’s energy history: No other fuel source began as a religious mystery, evolved through millennia of technological innovation across multiple civilizations, and emerged as an indispensable commodity and tool of international coercion. The priestess inhaling vapors at Delphi could not have imagined Chinese engineers drilling 1,000-meter wells with bamboo cable, those Chinese engineers could not have foreseen American fracturing operations unlocking shale formations, and early American pipeline builders could not have anticipated Russia using gas flows as leverage against European nations.

What began as a cooking fuel and illumination source now shapes international relations and natural gas infrastructure—pipelines, storage facilities, liquefaction terminals—now represents not just economic investment, but strategic positioning that locks nations into decades-long dependencies and alliances.

History

Ancient Discovery and Sacred Flames (8th Century BCE – 7th Century CE)

The earliest human encounters with natural gas were mystical experiences. Around the 8th century BCE, the Oracle of Delphi became one of antiquity’s most influential institutions, built upon natural gas seepages at the Temple of Apollo on Mount Parnassus. The priestess Pythia inhaled vapors—likely ethylene and methane, though scholars debate the exact composition—that induced trance-like states for delivering prophecies. Greek historian Diodorus Siculus later recorded the discovery legend, describing how goats near the chasm would leap and vocalize strangely after approaching the fissure.

Ancient civilizations documented eternal flames across the Mediterranean and Middle East. Around 484-425 BCE, Herodotus wrote about the perpetual fires at Baba Gurgur near Kirkuk in Mesopotamia. Ctesias provided the earliest written account of Mount Chimaera’s flames in Lycia (modern Turkey) around 400 BCE. These natural gas seepages, where lightning or other ignition sources created perpetual fires, inspired mythological explanations. Palaephatus attempted to rationalize the Chimaera myth in 340 BCE, explaining that fire emerged from an opening in the earth where Bellerophon had burned down a forest.

Roman and Greek scholars continued documenting these phenomena. Strabo mapped eternal flames across the ancient world, describing Mount Chimaera as “a certain ravine stretching up from the coast” with burning flames. Around 62-65 CE, Seneca observed harmless flames at Hephaestion in Lycia, noting the fire “does no injury to the plants that grow there.” Pliny the Elder catalogued gas seepages throughout the Mediterranean in his 77 CE encyclopedia Naturalis Historia.

Plutarch provided the most detailed ancient eyewitness account while serving as priest at Delphi from approximately 95-120 CE. He described the Pythia entering the inner chamber and inhaling “pneuma” (vapor) from a fissure beneath the temple, noting its “sweet smell” that sometimes reached the waiting room. Crucially, Plutarch observed the oracle’s power weakening in his time, attributing this to geological changes like earthquakes sealing rock vents—remarkably accurate geological reasoning for the era.

Meanwhile, Persian civilization harnessed natural gas for practical purposes. Around the 1st century CE, the King of Persia constructed royal kitchens adjacent to an eternal flame ignited by lightning, using natural gas for cooking. This represented an early transition from viewing natural gas as purely mystical to recognizing its practical utility.

Chinese Innovation and Industrial Application (500 BCE – 16th Century)

While Western civilizations viewed natural gas primarily through religious and philosophical lenses, Chinese engineers developed sophisticated extraction and utilization technologies centuries ahead of the West. Around 500 BCE, engineers in Sichuan province constructed the world’s first natural gas pipelines using bamboo tubes, transporting gas from surface seepages to facilities where it boiled brine for salt production.

In 211 BCE, Chinese drilling operations achieved a breakthrough by excavating the first known natural gas well, reaching approximately 150 meters depth using bamboo drilling equipment and percussion techniques specifically designed to access natural gas in limestone formations. This represented not accidental discovery but intentional engineering to reach subsurface deposits.

By the 2nd century CE, Chinese natural gas operations had become remarkably advanced. Engineers began systematically searching for natural gas rather than stumbling upon it. They developed pipeline networks that routed gas over and under roads, sometimes extending a day’s travel from the source. Most impressively, they discovered that certain natural gas deposits were unsafe because they weren’t properly mixed with air, developing a complex refining process to mix gas with air before use—essentially creating the world’s first carburetor system for safe consumption.

During the Tang Dynasty (7th-9th centuries CE), China developed sophisticated extraction using “fire wells” reaching 182 meters deep, with portable bamboo tube transport systems supporting massive salt production operations. The Song Dynasty (960-1127) brought major breakthroughs in percussion drilling techniques, with natural gas employed on industrial scales to evaporate brine, producing salt traded across China.

Around 1041-1048, the Zhuotong Well in Daying County represented a landmark achievement. This well used long bamboo tubes with male-female joints to reach 300-400+ meter depths—capabilities Western drilling wouldn’t match for 800 years. Around 1050, Chinese engineers made another revolutionary advance by replacing solid bamboo drilling pipe with thin, flexible bamboo “cable,” dramatically reducing weight and allowing unprecedented depths.

By the Ming Dynasty (16th century), China operated systematic industrial-scale natural gas extraction with bamboo pipelines extending hundreds of kilometers, fueling salt production from wells 700-800 meters deep. European travelers during 1400-1700 reported observing dense networks of brine wells in Sichuan, some exceeding 450 meters depth, with at least one surpassing 1,000 meters.

Religious Significance and Early Modern Observations (3rd Century – 18th Century)

Natural gas maintained religious importance across cultures. Around the 3rd century CE, the Zoroastrian leader Mobed Kartir documented founding sacred fire temples in Transcaucasia near modern Baku, Azerbaijan, where natural gas seepages created eternal flames central to Zoroastrian worship. Arab geographer Estakhri wrote in 930 about fire worshippers living near Baku’s natural gas emissions.

Marco Polo’s travels through China (1271-1298) exposed European audiences to Chinese natural gas utilization for salt production. He also documented “numerous mysterious flames” across the Baku region and Absheron Peninsula, further spreading awareness of natural gas phenomena.

The Ateshgah Fire Temple, constructed in 1713 near Baku by Hindu and Sikh merchants, demonstrated natural gas’s continued religious significance. German traveler Johannes Lerch visited in 1733, recording twelve ancient Persian fire worshippers maintaining religious practices there. J. Hanway’s 1747 visit documented Indians, Persians, and Guebres worshipping at the temple’s natural gas flames.

In North America, French explorers in 1626 documented Native American tribes igniting natural gas seepages around Lake Erie—the first recorded observations of natural gas in the Americas.

Scientific Understanding Emerges (1659-1823)

Natural gas discovery in England in 1659 didn’t lead to widespread use; instead, manufactured “town gas” from carbonized coal became England’s primary illumination fuel. The gap between discovery and application would characterize natural gas development for centuries.

Alessandro Volta achieved the first scientific breakthrough in 1776 by discovering and identifying methane at Lake Maggiore in Italy. He collected flammable gas bubbles from marsh mud, calling it “inflammable air native to marshes.” By 1778, he had isolated and characterized methane, recognizing it as distinct from other gases and the primary component of natural gas. This marked the transition from viewing natural gas as a mysterious phenomenon to understanding its chemical nature.

Britain became the first nation to commercialize gas use in 1785, though this involved manufactured gas from coal rather than natural gas. The distinction between natural and manufactured gas would blur in early industry development, as distribution infrastructure served both.

In 1792, Scottish inventor William Murdoch created the first modern gas distribution network in Europe, using approximately 70 feet of copper and iron piping to provide gas lighting for his home. He demonstrated that gas could be transported through metal pipes and safely used for lighting. This established foundational principles for all future gas distribution networks, though his system used manufactured rather than natural gas.

British scientist Michael Faraday’s 1823 demonstrations of gas liquefaction—successfully liquefying chlorine, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide through cooling and pressure—laid groundwork for future natural gas liquefaction technology, though practical application would wait over a century.

American Natural Gas Industry Birth (1816-1859)

America’s natural gas industry began with illumination applications. In 1816, renowned painter Rembrandt Peale founded the first natural gas utility company in the United States, initially using gas piped through tubes to illuminate his Baltimore museum and gallery. Collaborating with Dr. Benjamin Kugler, Peale convinced four businessmen to organize the Gas Light Company of Baltimore, still operating today as Baltimore Gas and Electric.

William Hart earned the title “father of natural gas” in America by drilling the first well specifically intended to extract natural gas in 1821. After observing gas bubbles rising in a Fredonia, New York creek, Hart successfully drilled a 27-foot well. The Fredonia Gas Light Company, formally established in 1858, became the first incorporated natural gas company in the United States, building on Hart’s pioneering work.

Around 1825, the invention of gas pressure regulators solved uneven flow problems that caused unreliable lighting. These devices stabilized pressure and made gas delivery consistent—crucial for public acceptance of natural gas as reliable energy.

In 1848, Congress chartered the Washington Gas Light Company (still operating under its original name) to illuminate the Capitol building and grounds, including installing a six-foot natural gas lantern on the Capitol dome. This federal endorsement demonstrated growing confidence in natural gas technology.

Robert Bunsen’s development of the Bunsen burner (1854-1857, with assistant Peter Desaga) represented a crucial innovation. The device mixed natural gas with air in proper proportions, creating controllable flames suitable for cooking and heating—opening commercial applications beyond illumination. The burner was completed in 1854, with 50 units made for student use in early 1855.

The pivotal year 1859 brought Colonel Edwin Drake’s Pennsylvania well, which struck oil and natural gas at 69 feet—marking what most historians consider the beginning of the commercial natural gas industry in the United States. A two-inch diameter pipeline running 5.5 miles from Drake’s well to Titusville proved natural gas could be transported safely from underground sources to practical applications.

Industrial Expansion and Technology Development (1873-1930)

German engineer Karl von Linde’s 1873 construction of the first practical compression refrigeration machine laid technological foundations for eventual natural gas liquefaction. Karol Olszewski successfully liquefied methane in laboratory conditions in 1886—the first time natural gas’s primary constituent had been liquefied.

Natural gas demonstrated industrial competitiveness in 1885 when Pittsburgh industrialist Andrew Carnegie reported that natural gas in his steel operations replaced 10,000 tons of coal daily. This established natural gas as a viable industrial fuel, though transportation limitations constrained its growth.

Early pipeline efforts showed both promise and limitations. An 1891 pipeline stretching 120 miles from central Indiana wells to Chicago proved inefficient for long-distance transmission. The technology wasn’t yet ready for natural gas to become more than a regional resource.

The 1903 invention of reliable pipeline welding techniques using oxyacetylene by Edmond Fouché and Charles Picard would eventually enable long-distance pipelines, though major construction wouldn’t begin until the 1920s.

Early 20th century developments addressed storage challenges. The first experimental liquefied natural gas storage plant was constructed in Virginia in 1912. In 1915, Canada completed the first successful underground storage facility in Welland County, Ontario, using a depleted well reconditioned as storage—inaugurating technology essential for balancing seasonal demand. The Zoar field near Buffalo became the first U.S. underground storage facility in 1916.

The 1918 large-scale U.S. government liquefaction of natural gas aimed to extract helium, which naturally occurs in some natural gas deposits, demonstrating early recognition of natural gas’s component complexity.

European development lagged America but accelerated in the early 20th century. Romania completed Europe’s first natural gas transport pipeline in 1913, running from Sarmasel to supply brick and tile production in Sarmasu Mare. Extensions reached Turda in 1914, supplying a Solvay chemical plant and cement factory. Ploiesti became the first Romanian city using natural gas for illumination in 1928.

Also in 1913, the first commercial ammonia plant based on the Haber-Bosch process began operation at BASF’s Oppau, Germany facility, producing 30 metric tons daily. This marked industrial-scale ammonia synthesis using natural gas-derived hydrogen, establishing foundations for modern fertilizer production that would eventually consume 3-5% of global natural gas production.

By 1930, manufacturing technologies and drilling techniques advanced sufficiently to extract natural gas directly and transport it through large-diameter steel pipes. This unlocked natural gas’s true economic potential, transforming it from a localized resource to a commodity transportable over long distances.

The Pipeline Revolution and Market Structure (1931-1960)

The 1931 completion of the first 1,000-mile pipeline from Amarillo, Texas to Chicago, constructed by the natural gas Pipeline Company of America, marked the beginning of modern long-distance pipeline networks. The 1924 Magnolia Gas Company construction of a 14-mile all-welded pipeline had demonstrated welding viability; now the scale expanded dramatically.

The 1938 natural gas Act established federal oversight, giving the Federal Power Commission jurisdiction over interstate pipelines and wholesale sales. Companies now required certificates of public convenience and necessity before making interstate sales—creating regulatory structure that would govern the industry for decades.

In 1939, the world’s first industrial gas turbine for electricity generation—a 4-megawatt Brown Boveri unit—began operation in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, inaugurating natural gas use for power generation, though widespread adoption would wait decades.

The 1940 East Ohio Gas Company construction of the world’s first full-scale commercial liquefaction plant in Cleveland demonstrated natural gas could be liquefied and stored for peak demand. A commercial facility with atmospheric pressure storage opened there in 1941. However, the 1944 catastrophic Cleveland plant failure—thousands of gallons escaped, causing explosions and fires killing 130 people—set back liquefaction industry development significantly.

Post-World War II advances in welding techniques, pipe rolling, and metallurgy dramatically improved pipeline reliability, launching a construction boom lasting through the 1960s. Thousands of miles of new pipeline transformed natural gas from regional to truly national industry in America.

Hydraulic fracturing began experimentally in 1947, using pressurized fluids to create rock fractures enhancing natural gas flow. Halliburton conducted the first commercially successful fracturing treatment in 1949, beginning widespread production enhancement.

Also in 1949, General Electric installed the first commercial natural gas turbine for U.S. power generation—a 3.5-MW unit at Oklahoma Gas & Electric’s Belle Isle Station, which also used exhaust heat for feedwater heating, making it effectively the nation’s first combined cycle configuration. The first purpose-built combined-cycle plant began operation in Korneuburg, Austria in 1961, demonstrating efficiency advantages of capturing waste heat from gas turbines to drive steam turbines.

By 1950, the United States accounted for 90% of global natural gas production and consumption. Natural gas remained largely an American industry with minimal international development. Even by 1960, the U.S. produced 75% of the world’s total despite growing international activity.

The 1954 Supreme Court ruling in Phillips Petroleum Company v. Wisconsin extended Federal Power Commission authority to regulate wellhead prices, fundamentally changing market regulation for forty years. Federal regulation of thousands of independent producers would shape—and ultimately constrain—American natural gas markets until deregulation began in the 1970s.

Global Expansion and LNG Revolution (1953-1970s)

Soviet natural gas development began with 1953 extraction in Western Siberia at Beryozovo, where an unexpected well blowout revealed vast reserves. The massive 1960 Western Siberia discovery and 1966 Urengoy field discovery—which would become the world’s second-largest field—transformed the Soviet Union into a natural gas superpower. Production began in Western Siberia in 1968, eight years after discovery. Urengoy production started in 1978, eventually becoming the world’s most productive field.

The Soviets quickly weaponized natural gas for geopolitical influence. Exports to Czechoslovakia began in 1967, extending to Austria in 1968. Natural gas became a tool for binding Eastern European satellites and influencing neutral Western European nations through energy dependence—a strategy that would intensify for decades.

The discovery of the Groningen field in the Netherlands in 1959 transformed European natural gas economics, containing reserves that created major export markets to Belgium, France, and West Germany.

The same year brought another revolution: the Methane Pioneer, a converted World War II Liberty ship, successfully transported the first liquefied natural gas cargo from Lake Charles, Louisiana to Canvey Island, United Kingdom. This proved the viability of intercontinental natural gas transport via LNG tankers, overcoming the tyranny of pipeline geography.

The U.K. began importing Algerian LNG in 1963, establishing Europe’s first regular LNG operations. Algeria opened the first large-scale liquefaction plant in Arzew in 1964-1965, becoming a major exporter. The 1964 Methane Princess became the world’s first purpose-built LNG carrier. New U.S. liquefaction plants expanded American capacity through 1965. Phillips Petroleum’s 1969 Kenai, Alaska plant further expanded U.S. LNG production.

Libya began significant production in 1969 as Occidental Petroleum and others developed Libyan reserves. Algeria commenced commercial production in 1958, beginning North African participation in global markets.

The 1971 discovery of the North Field off Qatar’s coast found the world’s largest natural gas field, containing over 450 trillion cubic feet—reserves that would eventually make Qatar a liquefied natural gas superpower, though development would take decades.

The 1970 adoption of federal Gas Code (Part 192) established minimum federal safety standards for pipeline facilities based on ASME B31.8 technical standards. Critically, pipelines installed before these rules received grandfathering exemptions—creating a legacy safety issue.

President Nixon’s 1973 announcement of Project Independence, responding to oil embargoes, initiated policies increasing natural gas exploration, establishing fuel efficiency standards, and promoting alternative energy research. The 1976 Eastern Gas Shales Project conducted public-private hydraulic fracturing demonstrations to develop shale gas extraction. MERC engineers’ 1976 patent for directional drilling would prove crucial for future unconventional formation recovery. The 1977 Department of Energy demonstration of massive hydraulic fracturing in Colorado achieved breakthroughs enabling shale gas production decades later.

The 1978 Natural Gas Policy Act began price deregulation, fundamentally restructuring how natural gas was priced and sold in America—a major shift from the 1938 natural gas Act’s regulatory regime.

Deregulation and Market Transformation (1981-2000s)

Mitchell Energy drilled the C.W. Slay No. 1 well in Wise County, Texas in 1981—the first commercial well in the Barnett Shale formation. This well produced nearly one billion cubic feet over four years, though the technology wasn’t yet economical enough to trigger a boom.

The 1989 Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Order 636 completed natural gas market deregulation by requiring pipeline companies to unbundle services—separating transportation from sales. This created the competitive market structure existing today, forcing pipelines to provide open access to transportation services. The 1994 regulatory changes allowing open access to storage for commercial purposes beyond operational requirements further transformed competitive markets.

Mitchell Energy’s partnership with the Department of Energy and Gas Research Institute in 1991 developed tools for effectively fracturing gas-bearing shale formations in Texas. Mitchell Energy drilled the first horizontal Barnett Shale well that year, initiating experiments crucial to the coming shale gas revolution.

The breakthrough came with slickwater fracturing fluids beginning use in 1996, dramatically improving hydraulic fracturing economics in shale formations. In 1997, Nick Steinsberger of Mitchell Energy applied the slickwater technique with higher pump pressures in the Barnett Shale of North Texas, creating a breakthrough in extraction efficiency and proving vast shale reserves could be commercially viable.

The 1998 S.H. Griffin No. 3 natural gas well in Texas demonstrated the new technique’s power, producing more natural gas in its first 90 days than any of Mitchell Energy’s previous wells. The validation was complete.

The Shale Gas Revolution (2004-2020)

Armed with proven technology, operators began extensively drilling the Fayetteville Shale in Arkansas in 2004 after geological data showed similarities to the productive Barnett Shale. The Marcellus Shale in the Northeastern United States also began extensive drilling in 2004, utilizing hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling techniques pioneered in Texas.

By 2010, approximately 60% of all new crude oil and natural gas wells worldwide used hydraulic fracturing, making it the dominant extraction technology. The impact was dramatic: in 2009, the United States became the world’s top natural gas producer, surpassing Russia, as the shale gas revolution dramatically increased American production.

The 2015 Aliso Canyon massive gas leak near Los Angeles led to formation of an interagency task force and prompted new federal safety regulations for underground storage facilities, highlighting infrastructure safety challenges.

In 2016, the United States began exporting liquefied natural gas from the Lower 48 states for the first time, enabled by increased production from hydraulic fracturing. China entered the shale game in 2020 when China National Petroleum Corporation reported daily production of 20 million cubic meters from its Changning-Weiyuan demonstration zone.

Global Dominance and Geopolitical Weapon (2006-Present)

Qatar became the world’s leading liquefied natural gas exporter in 2006, with LNG terminal capacity reaching 42 billion cubic meters annually as mid-1990s infrastructure investments reached full production.

Russia demonstrated natural gas’s geopolitical weaponization in 2009 by suspending pipeline flows to Ukraine for thirteen days during winter while renegotiating economic terms. This showed natural gas as political leverage—a pattern that would intensify, culminating in Russia’s weaponization of European energy dependence during the 2022 Ukraine conflict.

By 2022, natural gas supplied about one-quarter of the world’s primary energy consumption. Global production reached record highs in 2024. That year, Venture Global’s Plaquemines liquefaction terminal and Cheniere’s Corpus Christi Expansion became operational, adding over 2 billion cubic feet per day of LNG capacity to U.S. export infrastructure. The U.S. natural gas spot price at Henry Hub averaged $2.21 per million British thermal units—the lowest average annual price in inflation-adjusted dollars ever recorded, due to robust supply.

In 2025, global natural gas demand increased by 2.7%, reaching all-time highs. Natural gas remains critical for electricity generation, industrial processes, and heating worldwide. United States natural gas exports via LNG are forecast to exceed 16 billion cubic feet per day, nearly doubling from 2024 levels, as new liquefaction terminals enter service along the Gulf Coast.

Conclusion

From the mystical vapors inhaled by the Oracle of Delphi to the massive LNG tankers crossing oceans today, natural gas has transformed from mysterious phenomenon to essential global commodity. Chinese engineers pioneered extraction and distribution technologies a millennium before the West. Scientific understanding emerged gradually from Volta’s methane identification through incremental advances in liquefaction, storage, and combustion control. American innovation created the first commercial industry, though federal regulation both enabled infrastructure development and later constrained market efficiency until deregulation.

The hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling revolution of the late 20th and early 21st centuries unlocked previously inaccessible reserves, fundamentally altering global energy geopolitics. The United States transformed from natural gas importer to the world’s largest producer and a major LNG exporter. Russia weaponized its vast reserves for political leverage. Qatar emerged as an LNG giant based on the massive North Field discovery.

Today, natural gas supplies one-quarter of global primary energy, fuels electricity generation worldwide, provides feedstock for fertilizer production feeding billions, and serves as a geopolitical tool shaping international relations. The industry faces challenges including aging pipeline infrastructure with grandfathered safety exemptions, storage facility risks demonstrated by incidents like Aliso Canyon, and questions about natural gas’s role in energy transition amid climate concerns. Yet demand continues growing, reaching all-time highs in 2025, as natural gas remains indispensable to modern civilization—a remarkable journey from ancient eternal flames to today’s sophisticated global energy system.

Chronology

Natural gas has shaped human civilization for millennia, from ancient religious rituals centered around eternal flames, to modern global energy markets moving trillions of cubic feet across continents:

c. 8th Century BCE – The Oracle of Delphi was established at the Temple of Apollo on Mount Parnassus in Greece, where natural gas seepages created perpetual flames emerging through fissures in the rock, with the priestess Pythia inhaling natural gas vapors (ethylene and methane) that induced trance-like states for delivering prophecies. This is debated in scholarship: While the 2001 de Boer study proposed ethylene, later studies (Etiope et al. 2006) challenged this and suggested methane and carbon dioxide instead. The scientific community remains divided on whether it was primarily ethylene or methane that the priestess inhaled.

c. 500 BCE – Chinese engineers in the Sichuan province constructed the world’s first natural gas pipelines using bamboo tubes to transport natural gas from surface seepages to facilities where it was used to boil brine for salt production.

c. 484-425 BCE – Greek historian Herodotus documented the eternal flames at Baba Gurgur near Kirkuk in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) in his Histories, describing one of the ancient world’s most significant natural gas seeps.

c. 400 BCE – Ancient Greeks documented natural gas phenomena, with Ctesias providing the earliest known written account of Mount Chimaera’s eternal flames in Lycia, Turkey in his Persica (original lost; known through citations by Pliny the Elder in Historia Naturalis and Photius).

340 BCE – Palaephatus wrote his work attempting to rationalize Greek myths: “There is a great opening in the earth, from which fire emerges. The name of this mountain is Chimaera.” He described the mountain as having two access points—front from Xanthus, rear from Caria—with fire emerging from an opening in the earth. He explained that a lion lived by the front access and a serpent by the rear, and that Bellerophon burned down the forest (Telmissis) to destroy them, thereby rationalizing the myth.

211 BCE – Chinese drilling operations in Sichuan province successfully excavated the first known natural gas well, reaching depths of approximately 150 meters using bamboo drilling equipment and percussion techniques specifically designed to access natural gas deposits in limestone formations.

c. 60-30 BCE – Greek historian Diodorus Siculus records the discovery of Delphi’s vapors: “There is a chasm at this place where now is situated what is known as the ‘forbidden’ sanctuary, and as goats had been wont to feed about this because Delphi had not as yet been settled, invariably any goat that approached the chasm and peered into it would leap about in an extraordinary fashion and utter a sound quite different from” normal.

c. 7 BCE – 23 CE – Greek geographer and historian Strabo maps eternal flames across the ancient world. Strabo placed Mount Chimaera, “a certain ravine, Chimaera, stretching up from the coast”, in the vicinity of the Cragus Mountains in Lycia (southern part of present Babadağ). He described it as a topographical feature with burning flames. “The place where the oracle is delivered, is said to be a deep hollow cavern, the entrance to which is not very wide. From it rises up an exhalation which inspires a divine frenzy,” he wrote.

c. 1st century CE – Persian civilization utilized natural gas from a natural seepage that had been ignited by lightning, with the King of Persia constructing royal kitchens adjacent to this eternal flame to harness natural gas for cooking purposes.

c. 62-65 CE – Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca observes harmless flames at Hephaestion. Seneca wrote in Latin: “In Lycia regio notissima est (Hephaestion incolae vocant), foratum pluribus locis solum, quod sine ullo nascentium damno ignis innoxius circumit. Laeta itaque regio est et herbida, nihil flammis adurentibus sed tantum vi remissa ac languida refulgentibus.” (Translation: “There is a well-known place in Lycia—called by the inhabitants ‘Hephaestion’—where the ground is full of holes in many places and is surrounded by a harmless fire, which does no injury to the plants that grow there. Hence the place is fertile and luxuriant with growth, because the flames do not scorch but merely shine with a force that is mild and feeble.”)

77 CE – Roman naturalist and historian Pliny the Elder chronicled gas seepages in the Mediterranean area, including the Chimaera flames in modern-day Turkey, as part of his encyclopedia Naturalis Historia (which he worked on until his death in 79 AD).

c. 95-120 CE – Plutarch served as a priest at the Temple of Apollo at Delphi and provided detailed firsthand observations. He described the Pythia (oracle priestess) entering the adyton (inner chamber) and inhaling “pneuma” (vapor/gas) from a fissure or chasm beneath the temple. He noted the vapor had a “sweet smell” that was sometimes strong enough to be detected in the waiting room outside the adyton. Crucially, Plutarch observed that in his time the power of the oracle was weakening, possibly because the gaseous emissions were decreasing—he attributed this to geological changes such as earthquakes sealing up vents in the rock. This is the most detailed ancient eyewitness account of oracular gas emissions by someone who directly observed the phenomenon multiple times over many years.

c. 2nd Century CE – The Chinese began systematically searching for natural gas rather than simply discovering it accidentally. In addition, the Chinese developed increasingly sophisticated natural gas infrastructure during this period, routing gas through bamboo pipelines to locations sometimes as far as a day’s travel from the source. These pipeline networks crossed under and over roads to reach their destinations. Most importantly, Chinese engineers discovered that certain natural gas deposits were unsafe to use because they were not properly mixed with air. They developed a complex refining process to mix the gas with air before use, creating what was essentially the world’s first carburetor system to make the gas safe for consumption.

c. 3rd Century CE – Mobed Kartir, a Zoroastrian religious leader, documented founding sacred fire temples in the Transcaucasia region (including areas around modern Baku, Azerbaijan), where natural gas seepages created “eternal flames” used in Zoroastrian worship.

c. 7th to 9th Century CE – Tang Dynasty China developed sophisticated natural gas extraction using 182-meter deep “fire wells” with portable bamboo tube transport systems for salt production.

930 – Arab geographer Estakhri wrote about fire worshippers living near Baku, Azerbaijan, where natural gas seepages emerged from the ground, documenting the continued religious significance of natural gas in the region in his book The Ways of States.

c. 960-1127 – Chinese engineers in Sichuan Province made a major breakthrough in natural gas extraction with the invention of specialized percussion drilling techniques, developing sophisticated bamboo drilling equipment that became the standard for salt and natural gas well production. Natural gas was employed on a massive industrial scale to evaporate brine for salt production, with salt being traded across all of China.

c. 1041-1048 – The Zhuotong Well in Daying County, Sichuan Province, China, was constructed using advanced bamboo drilling technology, becoming a landmark achievement in natural gas extraction. This well utilized long, straight, thick bamboo tubes fitted together with male-female joints to draw underground brine, representing a technique that enabled wells to reach depths of 300-400+ meters, 800 years ahead of Western capabilities.

c. 1050 – Chinese engineers achieved a revolutionary breakthrough when solid bamboo drilling pipe was replaced with thin, light, flexible bamboo “cable,” dramatically reducing the weight that needed to be lifted during drilling operations. This innovation allowed wells to reach unprecedented depths and enabled the expansion of natural gas extraction operations throughout Sichuan Province.

1271-1298 – Marco Polo traveled through China and documented salt production techniques in regions including Sichuan and Yunnan, observing natural gas being used to boil brine from wells for salt manufacturing, providing European audiences with detailed accounts of Chinese natural gas utilization. He observed and documented “numerous mysterious flames” in the Baku region, all over the Absheron Peninsula, in his 1298 travelogue The Travels of Marco Polo.

c. 1400-1700 – European travelers to China during this period reported observing salt and natural gas production from dense networks of brine wells in Sichuan Province. Some of these wells had been sunk deeper than 450 meters, and at least one well was more than 1,000 meters deep. These observations documented the continued operation of China’s long-established brine and natural gas extraction industry.

c. 16th century – Ming Dynasty China developed systematic industrial-scale natural gas extraction and transportation, using bamboo pipelines extending hundreds of kilometers to fuel salt production from 700-800 meter deep wells in Sichuan Province.

1626 – French explorers documented Native American tribes igniting natural gas seepages around Lake Erie in North America, representing the first recorded observations of natural gas in the Americas.

1659 – Natural gas was discovered in England, though it was not widely used. Instead, gas obtained from carbonized coal (known as town gas) became the primary fuel for illuminating streets and houses throughout England.

1683 – German traveler Engelbert Kaempfer visited Surakhani near Baku, Azerbaijan, documenting “seven holes with eternal fires” fueled by natural gas seepages, describing how fire worshippers used these natural gas flames for religious ceremonies.

1713 – The Ateshgah Fire Temple was constructed in Surakhani near Baku, Azerbaijan, built by Hindu and Sikh merchants who traveled to the region to worship at natural gas seepages. The earliest parts of the temple date from 1713.

1733 – German traveler Johannes Lerch visited the Ateshgah temple near Baku and recorded that twelve Guebres (ancient Persian fire worshippers) were living there, maintaining religious practices centered around natural gas flames.

1747 – J. Hanway visited Baku and documented the Ateshgah temple where natural gas flames were used for worship by people he described as “Indians,” “Persians,” and “Guebres,” providing detailed observations of natural gas religious practices.

1775 – Natural gas was first discovered in what would become the United States near Charleston, West Virginia, marking the earliest known discovery of natural gas in North America by European settlers.

1776 – Alessandro Volta discovered and scientifically identified methane gas at Lake Maggiore in Italy, collecting gas bubbles rising from marsh mud and determining they were flammable. He called it “inflammable air native to marshes,” and by 1778 had isolated and characterized methane, recognizing it as a distinct gas and the primary component of natural gas. This was the first scientific identification of methane as a distinct chemical substance.

1785 – Britain became the first nation to commercialize natural gas use when manufactured gas produced from coal was used to illuminate houses and streetlights, though this represented synthetic rather than naturally occurring natural gas.

1792 – Scottish inventor William Murdoch, working for James Watt, created the first modern gas distribution network in Europe using approximately 70 feet of copper and iron piping to provide gas lighting for his home, demonstrating that natural gas could be transported through metal pipes and used for lighting. He later doubled his system to light a friend’s home, establishing the foundational principle for all future gas distribution networks.

1816 – Renowned painter Rembrandt Peale founded the first natural gas utility company in the United States, originally using natural gas piped through tubes to illuminate his museum and gallery in Baltimore, Maryland. Peale collaborated with scientist Dr. Benjamin Kugler and convinced four local businessmen to help organize the Gas Light Company of Baltimore (still in operation today as Baltimore Gas and Electric).

1821 – William Hart, regarded as the “father of natural gas” in America, drilled the first well specifically intended to extract natural gas in Fredonia, New York, after observing natural gas bubbles rising to the surface of a creek, successfully drilling a 27-foot well.

1823 – British scientist Michael Faraday demonstrated gas liquefaction techniques by liquefying chlorine, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen bromide, carbon dioxide, and other gases through cooling and applying pressure, laying the groundwork for later natural gas liquefaction technology.

c. 1825 – The first gas pressure regulators were invented to address uneven gas flow that caused unreliable lighting in early gas distribution systems. These devices stabilized pressure and made gas delivery consistent, which was crucial for broader public acceptance of natural gas as a reliable energy source.

1848 – Congress chartered the Washington Gas Light Company (still operating under its original name) to light the Capitol building and grounds with natural gas, including installing a six-foot-wide natural gas lantern on the Capitol dome itself, demonstrating federal government endorsement of natural gas technology.

1854-1857 – Robert Bunsen (with assistant Peter Desaga) developed the Bunsen burner in 1854-1855 – a device that mixed natural gas with air in proper proportions to create a controllable flame suitable for cooking and heating, opening new commercial applications for natural gas beyond illumination. The burner was first completed in 1854, and 50 units were made for student use in early 1855. Bunsen and Roscoe published a description in 1857.

1858 – The Fredonia Gas Light Company was formally established, becoming the first incorporated natural gas company in the United States, building on William Hart’s pioneering 1821 well in Fredonia, New York.

1859 – Colonel Edwin Drake drilled a well in Pennsylvania that struck oil and natural gas at 69 feet below the surface, marking what most historians consider the beginning of the commercial natural gas industry in the United States. A two-inch diameter natural gas pipeline was constructed running 5.5 miles from Colonel Drake’s well to the village of Titusville, proving that natural gas could be transported safely and effectively from underground sources to practical applications.

1873 – German engineer Karl von Linde built the first practical compression refrigeration machine, laying the technological foundation that would eventually enable natural gas liquefaction.

1885 – Pittsburgh industrialist Andrew Carnegie reported that natural gas used in his steel manufacturing operations replaced 10,000 tons of coal per day, demonstrating natural gas’s competitive advantage for industrial processes and helping establish natural gas as an industrial fuel.

1886 – Karol Olszewski successfully liquefied methane, the primary constituent of natural gas, in laboratory conditions for the first time.

1891 – One of the first major natural gas pipelines was constructed in the United States, stretching 120 miles to carry natural gas from wells in central Indiana to Chicago, though this early pipeline proved inefficient at long-distance natural gas transmission.

1903 – Edmond Fouché and Charles Picard invented reliable pipeline welding techniques using oxyacetylene. While the technique was developed in 1903, the construction of the first long-distance natural gas pipelines enabled by this and other advances occurred later, with a major boom beginning in the 1920s.

1912 – The first experimental plant designed to store liquefied natural gas was constructed in Virginia, United States, representing early attempts to solve natural gas storage challenges.

1913 – Romania completed the first natural gas transport pipeline in Europe, running from Sarmasel to supply brick and tile production facilities in Sarmasu Mare, making Romania the first European country to use natural gas in industry; The first commercial ammonia plant based on the Haber-Bosch process began operation at BASF’s facility in Oppau, Germany, with a production capacity of 30 metric tons per day. This marked the beginning of industrial-scale ammonia synthesis using natural gas-derived hydrogen, establishing the foundation for modern fertilizer production that would eventually consume 3-5% of global natural gas production.

1914 – Romania extended its natural gas pipeline network to Turda, supplying the Solvay chemical plant and a cement factory, demonstrating natural gas applications in heavy industrial processes.

1915 – The first successful underground natural gas storage facility was completed in Welland County, Ontario, Canada, using a depleted natural gas well reconditioned as a storage field, inaugurating a technology essential for balancing seasonal natural gas demand.

1916 – The Zoar field near Buffalo, New York, became the first underground natural gas storage facility in the United States, opening operations just south of the Canadian border.

1918 – The United States government conducted the first large-scale liquefaction of natural gas as part of efforts to extract helium, which naturally occurs as a small component of some natural gas deposits.

1924 – Magnolia Gas Company constructed a 14-mile all-welded natural gas pipeline using oxyacetylene welding technology, demonstrating the viability of welded pipeline construction methods.

1928 – Ploiesti became the first city in Romania to use natural gas for illumination, marking the expansion of natural gas beyond industrial applications to urban infrastructure.

1929 – Natural gas was first discovered in the Volga-Urals basin region of the Soviet Union, initiating what would become major natural gas production in Russia.

1930 – Manufacturing technologies and drilling techniques advanced to the point where it became possible to extract natural gas directly from the ground and transport it through large-diameter steel pipes, unlocking the true economic potential of natural gas and transforming it from a localized resource to a commodity that could be transported over long distances.

1931 – The first 1,000-mile natural gas pipeline was completed, running from Amarillo, Texas to Chicago, constructed by the natural gas Pipeline Company of America, marking the beginning of the modern long-distance natural gas pipeline network in the United States.

1937 – Patents for large-scale natural gas liquefaction technology were issued, establishing the intellectual property framework for commercial LNG development.

1938 – The United States Congress passed the natural gas Act, giving the Federal Power Commission jurisdiction over interstate natural gas pipelines and wholesale sales, establishing federal oversight that required companies to obtain certificates of public convenience and necessity before making interstate sales of natural gas.

1939 – The world’s first industrial gas turbine for electricity generation, a 4-megawatt simple cycle unit built by Brown Boveri Company, began commercial operation at a municipal power station in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, inaugurating natural gas use for electric power generation.

1940 – The East Ohio Gas Company built the world’s first full-scale commercial natural gas liquefaction plant in Cleveland, Ohio, demonstrating that natural gas could be liquefied and stored for peak demand periods.

1941 – The first commercial natural gas liquefaction facility with atmospheric pressure storage began operations in Cleveland, Ohio, representing a major advancement in natural gas infrastructure.

1944 – The Cleveland natural gas liquefaction plant suffered a catastrophic failure when thousands of gallons of liquefied natural gas escaped, resulting in explosions and fires that killed 130 people, setting back natural gas liquefaction industry development.

1945-1960s – Following World War II, new welding techniques, advances in pipe rolling and metallurgy dramatically improved pipeline reliability, launching a construction boom that lasted through the 1960s and resulted in thousands of miles of new natural gas pipeline being constructed across America, creating the modern interstate pipeline infrastructure and transforming natural gas from a regional to a truly national industry.

1947 – Hydraulic fracturing of oil and natural gas wells began as an experimental technique, using pressurized fluids to create fractures in underground rock formations to enhance natural gas flow.

1949 – Halliburton conducted the first commercially successful hydraulic fracturing treatment of natural gas wells in the United States, marking the beginning of widespread natural gas production enhancement through fracturing; General Electric installed the first commercial natural gas turbine for power generation in the United States, a 3.5-MW unit at Oklahoma Gas & Electric’s Belle Isle Station in Oklahoma City, which also used exhaust heat for feedwater heating, making it effectively the nation’s first combined cycle configuration.

1950 – The United States accounted for 90% of global natural gas production and consumption, as natural gas remained largely an American industry with minimal development elsewhere.

1953 – Natural gas was first extracted in Western Siberia in the Soviet Union at Beryozovo, where an unexpected well blowout revealed vast natural gas reserves in the region.

1954 – The United States Supreme Court ruled in Phillips Petroleum Company v. Wisconsin that the Natural Gas Act of 1938 required federal regulation of wellhead natural gas prices, extending Federal Power Commission authority to regulate sales by thousands of independent natural gas producers and fundamentally changing natural gas market regulation for the next 40 years.

1958 – Algeria commenced commercial natural gas production, beginning North African participation in global natural gas markets.

1959 – The massive Groningen natural gas field was discovered in the Netherlands, containing reserves that would transform European natural gas economics and create major export markets to Belgium, France, and West Germany; The Methane Pioneer, a converted World War II Liberty ship, successfully transported the first cargo of liquefied natural gas from Lake Charles, Louisiana, to Canvey Island in the United Kingdom, proving the viability of intercontinental natural gas transport via LNG tankers.

1960 – The United States still produced 75% of the world’s total natural gas despite growing international development, maintaining American dominance in natural gas production; natural gas was discovered in Western Siberia region of the Soviet Union, revealing deposits that would become the largest natural gas reserves in the world.

1961 – The first purpose-built combined-cycle power plant began operation in Korneuburg, Austria, demonstrating the efficiency advantages of capturing waste heat from natural gas turbines to drive steam turbines for additional electricity generation.

1963 – The United Kingdom began importing liquefied natural gas from Algeria, establishing Europe’s first regular LNG import operations.

1964 – Algeria opened the first large-scale natural gas liquefaction plant in Arzew, which became operational in 1965, making Algeria a major natural gas exporter; The Methane Princess became the world’s first ship specifically designed for transporting liquefied natural gas, purpose-built for LNG cargo operations.

1965 – New liquefied natural gas plants were constructed in the United States, expanding American natural gas liquefaction capacity through the decade.

1966 – The Urengoy natural gas field was discovered in Western Siberia, Soviet Union, which would become the second-largest natural gas field in the world and Russia’s most productive source.

1967 – The Soviet Union began large-scale natural gas exports to Czechoslovakia through pipeline infrastructure, marking the beginning of Soviet natural gas as a geopolitical tool in Eastern Europe.

1968 – The Soviet Union commenced natural gas exports to Austria, extending Soviet natural gas pipeline reach to neutral Western European nations; natural gas production began in the Western Siberia region of the Soviet Union, eight years after discovery, transforming the Soviet Union into a natural gas superpower.

1969 – Phillips Petroleum constructed the Kenai natural gas liquefaction plant in Alaska, expanding American LNG production capabilities; Libya began significant natural gas and oil production as Occidental Petroleum and other companies developed Libyan reserves.

1970 – The federal Gas Code (Part 192) was adopted in the United States, establishing minimum federal safety standards for natural gas pipeline facilities based on the ASME B31.8 technical standard that some states had already adopted. Pipelines installed before these safety rules were granted grandfathering exemptions.

1971 – The North Field, the world’s largest natural gas field, was discovered in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Qatar, containing reserves exceeding 450 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

1973 – President Richard Nixon announced Project Independence to promote U.S. domestic energy independence in response to oil embargos, initiating policies that would increase natural gas exploration, establish fuel efficiency standards, and promote alternative energy research.

1976 – The United States government initiated the Eastern Gas Shales Project, conducting numerous public-private hydraulic fracturing demonstration projects to develop natural gas extraction from shale formations; MERC engineers Joseph Pasini III and William K. Overby, Jr. patented an early directional drilling technique that would prove crucial for future natural gas recovery from unconventional formations.

1977 – The United States Department of Energy demonstrated massive hydraulic fracturing (MHF) in Colorado, achieving a critical breakthrough in natural gas extraction technology that would enable shale gas production decades later.

1978 – Natural gas production from the Urengoy field in Western Siberia began, supplying Soviet domestic needs and exports. It became the world’s most productive natural gas field; The United States Congress passed the natural gas Policy Act, beginning the process of natural gas price deregulation and fundamentally restructuring how natural gas was priced and sold in America, marking a major shift from the regulatory regime established by the 1938 natural gas Act.

1981 – Mitchell Energy drilled the C.W. Slay No. 1 well in Wise County, Texas, the first commercial natural gas well in the Barnett Shale formation, which produced nearly one billion cubic feet of natural gas over four years.

1985 – Robert Bunsen’s principles for mixing natural gas with air for safe combustion became widely adopted in residential and commercial heating systems globally.

1989 – The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued Order 636, requiring pipeline companies to unbundle their services (separating transportation from sales of natural gas), completing natural gas market deregulation and creating the competitive natural gas market structure that exists today. This order fundamentally transformed the natural gas industry by forcing pipelines to provide open access to their transportation services.

1991 – Mitchell Energy partnered with the United States Department of Energy and Gas Research Institute to develop tools for effectively fracturing natural gas-bearing shale formations in Texas. That same year, Mitchell Energy drilled the first horizontal natural gas well in the Barnett Shale, initiating experiments that would prove crucial to the shale gas revolution.

1994 – Open access to natural gas storage became standard following FERC regulatory changes, allowing anyone to use storage for commercial purposes beyond just operational requirements, fundamentally changing how natural gas storage facilities were utilized in competitive markets.

1996 – Slickwater fracturing fluids began being used in natural gas well development, dramatically improving the economics of hydraulic fracturing in shale formations.

1997 – Nick Steinsberger of Mitchell Energy applied the slickwater fracturing technique with higher pump pressures in the Barnett Shale of North Texas, creating a breakthrough in natural gas extraction efficiency and proving that vast natural gas reserves in shale could be commercially viable.

1998 – The S.H. Griffin No. 3 natural gas well in Texas demonstrated that new fracturing techniques produced more natural gas in its first 90 days than any of Mitchell Energy’s previous wells, validating the new approach.

2004 – Operators began extensively drilling natural gas wells in the Fayetteville Shale in Arkansas after geological data showed similarities to the productive Barnett Shale formation; The Marcellus Shale in the Northeastern United States began to be extensively drilled for natural gas, utilizing hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling techniques pioneered in Texas.

2006 – Qatar became the world’s leading exporter of liquefied natural gas, with LNG terminal export capacity reaching 42 billion cubic meters per year as natural gas infrastructure investments from the mid-1990s reached full production.

2009 – The United States became the world’s top producer of natural gas, surpassing Russia, as the shale gas revolution dramatically increased American natural gas production; Russia suspended natural gas pipeline flows to Ukraine for thirteen days during winter, using natural gas supply as a geopolitical leverage while renegotiating economic terms, demonstrating natural gas as a political weapon.

2010 – Approximately 60% of all new crude oil and natural gas wells worldwide were using hydraulic fracturing to increase production and efficiency, making it the dominant extraction technology.

2015 – A massive gas leak occurred at the Aliso Canyon Underground natural gas Storage Facility near Los Angeles, California, leading to formation of an interagency task force and prompting new federal safety regulations for underground natural gas storage facilities.

2016 – The United States began exporting liquefied natural gas from the Lower 48 states for the first time, enabled by increased natural gas production from hydraulic fracturing operations.

2020 – China National Petroleum Corporation reported daily natural gas production of 20 million cubic meters from its Changning-Weiyuan demonstration zone, as China developed its own shale natural gas resources.

2022 – Natural gas supplied about one-quarter of the world’s primary energy consumption.

2024 – Global natural gas production reached a record high; Venture Global’s Plaquemines natural gas liquefaction terminal and Cheniere’s Corpus Christi Expansion became operational, adding over 2 billion cubic feet per day of LNG capacity to United States natural gas export infrastructure; The United States natural gas spot price at Henry Hub averaged $2.21 per million British thermal units, the lowest average annual price in inflation-adjusted dollars ever recorded, due to robust natural gas supply.

2025 – Global natural gas demand increased by 2.7%, reaching all-time highs, with natural gas remaining critical for electricity generation, industrial processes, and heating worldwide; United States natural gas exports via LNG are forecast to exceed 16 billion cubic feet per day, nearly doubling from 2024 levels, as new liquefaction terminals enter service along the Gulf Coast.

Final Thoughts

Natural gas demand reached all-time highs in 2025, driven by forces that would have seemed incomprehensible to William Hart drilling his 27-foot well in Fredonia or even to the pipeline builders of the 1930s: Data centers powering artificial intelligence and cloud computing require reliable electricity that intermittent renewables cannot yet provide alone; Developing nations industrializing their economies turn to natural gas as a cleaner alternative to coal, seeking economic growth without the catastrophic air quality consequences that plagued industrializing nations in previous centuries; Chemical manufacturers depend on natural gas feedstocks for plastics, pharmaceuticals, and countless modern materials that define contemporary life. 

The question facing policymakers and industry leaders is not whether natural gas is good or bad in absolute terms, but rather what role it should play during the uncertain decades of energy transition ahead.

Thanks for reading!