Natural gas imports into the U.S. 1955-2023

In 2023, the United States imported 2,929 billion cubic feet of natural gas. U.S. imports of natural gas strongly increased from the 1990s to the early 2000s and peaked around the mid-2000s. As the U.S. has increased its domestic production of natural gas, the need for imports has steadily declined, despite an overall growing demand for the energy source. 

Natural gas exports exceeding imports

As imports of natural gas have fallen since 2005, U.S. natural gas exports have risen dramatically, especially from 2015 onward. Around this time, demand for natural gas increased as did the amount of natural gas exported in the form of LNG to non-neighboring countries.

Fracking since the financial crisis

The expansion of LNG export terminals and decrease in imports was driven in large part by changes in the natural gas industry following the 2008 Recession. As a peak in the OPEC crude oil price made purchasing oil more and more expensive, domestic oil and natural gas production took off. The U.S. Henry Hub natural gas price dropped as investors seized on low interest rates to develop alternative extraction methods, mainly through hydraulic fracturing (or fracking). This method is used to access natural gas and oil in formations that were previously difficult to reach, as well as to extend production in older oil and gas fields.