Vello Kuuskraa, president of Advanced Resources International and known for his work in energy economics and petroleum recovery technologies, commented at a recent energy conference in Fort Worth that he believes “unconventional gas is the future, both in the U.S. and overseas.”  Unconventional gas includes shale gas, tight gas and coal-bed methane.  Such deposits require measures such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing to enhance their recovery and make then economically feasible.

Kuuskraa expects his end-of-the-year calculations to show that the Barnett Shale has become the biggest gas-producing area in the U.S., outpacing the San Juan Basin in New Mexico and Colorado.  Further, Kuuskraa said that future unconventional gas recovery worldwide could significantly expand supplies helping make gas increasingly attractive as a fuel for transportation and electric power generation.

The survey found that most Americans continue to underestimate the amount of oil and gas that will be needed to meet future demand as predicted by governmental experts.  It was also noted that most respondents overestimate the role that renewable energy sources will play in the future demand, the amount of oil that is imported from the Middle East and the amount of oil and natural gas industry earnings. 

It is estimated by the Energy Information Administration that the US energy demand will increase 9% during the next 20 years.  The majority of respondents in the survey thought that demand would increase somewhere between 16% and 21%. 

Fossil fuels such as oil, gas, and coal are expected to make up approximately 85% of global energy demand – only 10% of respondents answered this question correctly.

The US Department of Energy estimates that 12% of oil consumed last year in the US was obtained from the Persian Gulf countries.  The majority of respondents in the survey thought that our dependence on fossil fuels from the Persian Gulf countries was over 30%.  Further, according to the DOE, Canada is the largest supplier of imported crude oil and more than 73% of oil and gas consumed in the US is actually produced in North America.

Finally, the oil and gas industry has paid over $242 billion in taxes in the past three years and earns just below $0.06 on every $1 of sales.  Most respondents believed that the industry contributed less than $100 billion or were not sure how much was contributed in taxes over the past three years and thought that the industry earned more than $0.20 per every $1 of sales.