Natural Gas Industry

Introduction

With valuable environmental assets compared to other fossil fuels and large reserves, natural gas has seen its share of global energy increasing steadily since the 70s. In the recent past, the gas markets were fairly predictable, they are now uncertain and undergoing profound changes. Individually, each regional market had developed gradually deposits from the nearest pipeline networks and limiting exchange between the zones. The current trend is marked by greater competition between the available sources and greater flexibility in the systems gas.The transportation of natural gas in liquid form (liquefied natural gas, LNG) was changing the organization of the industry with transactions between markets and Exchange spot. The growth of LNG now appears to be limited by the recent discoveries unconventional gas that create an excess supply and call into question again market design and the geopolitics of natural gas (Donaldson, 65).

In the U.S., the natural gas industry went through a phase of profound change with the establishment of "Natural Gas Policy Act" in 1978. The industry has grown from an almost totally regulated market in a liberalized market. The Order 636 of 1992 of the "Federal Energy Regulatory Commission" requires pipeline companies to unbundle their transportation, sale and storage, which was very important. So these companies have reduced the spectrum of their activities: vendors, they have become carriers of gas. In addition, producers, affiliates of the companies in charge of pipelines, distributors and dealers now have the opportunity to play a broader role in the supply of users (Friedman, 33).

North America is the largest natural gas market with a third of the world consumption which comes largely from his home production. The gas occupies a strategic place in the United States particularly in the electricity mix which he is second fuel strong growth. To meet this rising demand, the National production should continue to play a major role, but an increased emphasis was planned LNG projects with many terminals. By 2008, forecasts LNG imports from U.S.

Department of Energy has been revised downwards with a 3% share in the supply in 2020 against 16% in 2008. The effects of unconventional gas discoveries began in fact to appear on the market North American (Frooman, 221).

Demand for natural gas is increasing day by day, and figures shows that industrial demand for natural gas in 37.6 percent of natural gas demand, which the highest of any sector. It is very beneficial to study this industry, as this sector is expanding day by day. This sector is playing very important role in shaping economy. To understand this industry, step by step analysis is required. First of all, the introduction of industry is very important to have an overview of the industry. Then to understand the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, SWOT analysis is required. Two players in the industry will brought under research to analyze their performance in the industry. Also, their financial ratios will be analyzed in order to have a deep knowledge about the performance. Finally, conclusion will be made ...