Natural Gas: Fueling America (NAPSA)—When it comes to finding a fuel to rely on, an increas- ing numberof home buyers and builders say the answeris a nat- ural: natural gas. In fact, more than 70 percent of new homes built in the U.S. each year use natural gas. An Energy Staple Demandfor clean-burning natural gas is growing. Natural gas users: Nearly half of all the energy used for cooking, heating and fueling other home appliances comes from clean-burning natural gas. This may be because it requires so much less maintenance than homeheatingoil. lectric utilities Industrial Commercial 50% %o Residential 21% In recent years, industrial demand for natural gas has risen to unforeseen levels. In fact, industrial consumption in August 2000 was 15 percent higher than in August 1999. Much of this increased demandcanbetraced to industry’s effort to meet new envi- ronmental requirements. For example, new gas-fueled plants now produce a significant portion of our country’s electricity. In all, industry accounts for about 66 percent of U.S. natural gas consumption, according to the Energy Information Administration. Natural gas is attractive to industry for the samereasonsit’s popular with homeowners. Gas furnaces need little maintenance, saving companies millions of dol- Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration Juan Thomassie Natural gas is a simple chemi- cal compound that burns almost completely, with no ash and prac- tically no air pollution. gas is available to homeowners and businesses in almost every region of the country through more than 1.3 million miles of pipeline. lars a year in laborcosts. In addi- While current U.S. reserves would provide enough natural gas tally-friendly reputation. time in history, our demand for tion, corporations are drawn to gas because of its environmenNatural gas wasfirst used in this country in the 1800s, mostly to light street lamps. The Bun- sen burner showed gas could be used for cooking and heating as early as 1885 but it wasn’t until after World WarII that pipeline construction became economically attractive. Today, natural to satisfy domestic demand for more than 60 years, for the first natural gas is nearly outpacing production. As U.S. energy companies continue to develop explo- ration and production technology, however, they expect to easily meet future demand. For more information aboutoil and gas pricing and supply, visit www.oil360.org. wo--Soe 2-2-2 eee Note to Editors: This is the first in a series of 12 articles.
