Natural gas is an important energy fuel, even as the world transitions to a carbon-free economy. When investing in this industry, it’s key to know the ins and outs of natural gas production by country.
Production: 1.03 trillion cubic meters
The US is by far the largest producer of natural gas in the world, representing nearly a quarter of global natural gas production. Its output has increased by more than 350 billion cubic meters in the past decade owing to the increasing cost of coal, and advancements in extraction technology such as horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking.
Production: 699 billion cubic meters
Production: 244 billion cubic meters
Iran is the third largest natural gas-producing country, representing about 6 percent of global output. The Middle Eastern nation ranks second in terms of natural gas reserves. However, its natural gas infrastructure is far behind the top two natural gas producers. In 2022, Iran’s natural gas output was only about a third of Russia’s and a quarter of that of the US.
Iran has tripled its natural gas production in the past decade, becoming the Middle East’s largest producer. Iran and Qatar share the world’s largest natural gas field. Iran’s portion is known as South Pars and Qatar’s, North Dome.
Turkey and Iraq are major importers of Iranian natural gas, while Turkmenistan and Armenia have swap deals with Iran.
Production: 219 billion cubic meters
Production: 205 billion cubic meters
Production: 170 billion cubic meters
Production: 162 billion cubic meters
Production: 128 billion cubic meters
Production: 105 billion cubic meters
The ninth largest natural gas-producing country, Saudi Arabia has seen its output increase by more than 10 percent in the last five years to a record 105 billion cubic meters of the energy fuel.
Production: 102 billion cubic meters
Rounding out the top 10 natural gas-producing countries is Algeria. In 2022, the country’s output decreased only marginally by about 2 billion cubic meters over the previous year, but was still up by 17 billion cubic meters over 2020.
Natural gas is a mixture of methane and other naturally occurring gases. As fossil fuels, both crude oil and natural gas are formed via the same geological process. It isn’t surprising then that the two materials are often found together. Natural gas is the product of ancient decomposed organic matter that mixed with sediment, became buried and was subject to immense pressure and heat over millions of years.
Natural gas is well known as a fuel for heating, generating electricity and powering vehicles. However, it’s also used to manufacture various products, such as vinyl flooring, carpeting, Aspirin and artificial limbs; in addition, it’s a key component in the production of ammonia.
The EU is working to phase out Russian natural gas exports by 2027. The growing global LNG market allows flexibility for European countries looking to source natural gas supply from producers as close to home as Norway (Europe’s biggest gas supplier), other major natural gas suppliers in North Africa or from the world’s largest natural gas producer, the US.
Securities Disclosure: Melissa Pistilli and Georgia Williams hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.
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