Since the natural gas revolution began a decade ago, production has shot up in Pennsylvania. Hundreds of thousands of jobs have been created, the economy has been boosted, all while electric and heating bills have consistently dropped. Now, the University of Pennsylvania’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy has released a study detailing just how significant the effects of natural gas have been for Pennsylvania.
Between 2007 and 2016, natural gas production in Pennsylvania has helped reduce electric power costs by 79%, and lower residential gas prices by 40%. In that timespan, both electric and gas costs lowered nationwide, but Pennsylvania exceeded the national averages of 65% and 34% respectively.
In the same decade, demand for gas grew by 50.5% across the country, while natural gas production in Pennsylvania grew by about 2,800%. With natural gas in abundance, and a fast growing demand, the only piece left to the puzzle connects Pennsylvanian producers with downstream markets.
Just last week, Competitive Power Ventures broke ground on their $700 million CPV Fairview Energy Center in Cambria County. This plant will use ethane transported by Sunoco’s Mariner East pipeline to power more than 1 million homes in Pennsylvania.
Both nationwide demand and keystone state production continue to rise. We need to continue to expand our energy infrastructure so we can transport Pennsylvania’s incredible natural resources to markets across the country.