America continues to grapple with how to achieve energy security and environmental progress. Utah is at the heart of that challenge, as discussed in “The West’s electric grid is stretched, and extreme events could knock the lights out” (June 29).
While the author of the piece is right to express concerns about a growing imbalance between energy supply and demand, he missed a critical piece of the puzzle: Natural gas produced here in the U.S.
American natural gas is our nation’s largest source of electricity, supplying 38% of U.S. generation in 2022. But in Utah, only 26% of electricity came from natural gas, with 53% coming from coal.
This represents a major opportunity for Utah to transition to a reliable, lower carbon fuel and the state has already shown it plans to do just that. Per the U.S. Energy Information Administration, “Utah’s Strategic Energy Plan expects natural gas-fired generation will replace coal and will back up intermittent generation from renewables like wind and solar power.”
Natural gas can be the backbone of Utah’s power grid, supplying electricity even when the sun goes down and the wind stops blowing. Another big advantage is that, on average, fuel switching to natural gas reduces emissions by 50% in electricity generation. American natural gas is key to helping build a reliable, sustainable energy system.
Policymakers in Salt Lake City recognize the power of American natural gas and our industry stands ready to make it a bigger part of the Beehive State’s energy plans.
Lynn Granger, Midwest and Mountain West region director of the American Petroleum Institute, Denver