Yes but now shale gas is to cheap to drilling.
So, natural gas production in the U.S. has not grown since 2011.
In 2012, Chesapeake, the second-largest producer of natural gas, lost $940 million.
At the same time, natural gas consumption is skyrocketing.
In 2012, the U.S.used 25.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas used servus 22.9 trillion cubic feet in 2009.
This is why Royal Dutch Shell expects US natural gas prices to double by 2015.
Shale formations are not cheap to drill and it is why the amount of drilling rigs going after Natural Gas has fallen so much.
The chart is a little dated, we have been below 400 rigs for a month or so.
North America Rotary Rig Count (Jan 2000 - Current)
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/External.File?item=UGFyZW50SUQ9MTgwODUyfENoaWxkSUQ9LTF8VHlwZT0z&t=1
See tab: US Oil & Gas Split
At the same time, natural gas consumption is skyrocketing.
This is why Royal Dutch Shell expects US natural gas prices to double by 2015.
It’s only common sense to expect the drilling, and the consumption infrastructure, to both adjust to the cost of horizontal drilling and fracking, as well as the actual lifetime production of a fracked well. This is a process, not an event. Unless of course we simply let Genius Obama determine the price by fiat.
When you consider the need we have felt for a Strategic Petroleum Reserve, actually there could be a case to be made for the government to put a thumb on the scale to bias the market toward domestic production in preference to imports from the ME.