Natural Gas Production

The majority of the natural gas consumed in the United States is domestically produced, although the United States imports some natural gas to help supply domestic demand. Natural gas is primarily made up of methane, with low concentrations of other hydrocarbons, water, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, and some sulfur compounds.

Conventional Natural Gas Production 

Natural gas is extracted from subsurface rock formations via drilling. Advances in hydraulic fracturing technologies have enabled access to large volumes of natural gas from shale.

Renewable Natural Gas Production 

Chemically identical to conventional natural gas, renewable natural gas (RNG) is the purified product used as a vehicle fuel, which is produced by purifying biogas produced from decaying organic materials. Biomethane, which is another term for this processed pipeline-quality fuel, refers to purified biogas and is interchangeable with traditional natural gas but is often used in non-vehicle applications. Like conventional natural gas, RNG can be compressed (CNG) or liquefied (LNG) for use in vehicles. Learn more about CNG and LNG.