Author name: Seth Blumsack

Since the price deregulation in natural gas was enacted in the 1990s, there has been roughly one “dash for gas” every decade. These dashes for gas have influenced the globalization of the gas industry while being uniquely North American and European phenomena. The first two involved increasing demands from the power sectors in Europe and the United States which were chasing what appeared to be dwindling supplies. The current dash for gas is fundamentally different and is driven by flush supplies in North America chasing multiple new markets. The nature of the current dash for gas has more potential to induce a globalized market for natural gas than did the previous episodes.