U.S. energy reserves in the form of gas about 80% larger than the oil reserves. Future drilling will add modestly to keep either, and the likelihood that the new gas reserves more important.
T. Boone Pickens is proposing to use more natural gas as fuel for cars. His ads are gaining traction, and many people are beginning to ask themselves whether a compressed natural gas or CNG car in future.
The answer depends onknow three simple facts; CNG is actually much less expensive than gasoline, natural gas is readily available and commercial vehicles with bi-fuel capabilities available to sell? The answers are yes, no, yes.
Natural gas can be offered at a significantly lower price than gasoline. In a recent ad offered by a large gas company a price of $ 2.04 per GGE for CNG while the comparable price for regular gasoline at $ 3.46 per gallon could be seen. The energy content of compressed natural gas is quoted in"Gallon of gasoline equivalent" or GGE. This is a new unit based on avoided the energy content of the gas. By basing the price of natural gas in energy terms, can be the energy prices of CNG and gasoline directly compared. This is by far the best solution for customers to compare prices for two equal amounts of energy, one can for a gas, the other for gasoline. Measurement of the metered amount of natural gas is more difficult than measuring an equivalent amount of gasoline. However, aprecise measurements can be made. Installing a CNG-meter is more expensive than the gasoline counterpart.
Currently, there are almost no gas stations equipped to dispense natural gas. The natural gas industry has considerable investments before a sufficient number of gas stations do, it is locally available. If you are the lucky one, lives in the vicinity of such a new station, you should seriously consider buying a new car with bi-fuel capability. For the local Take one uses CNG, for long-haul travel is a still from the gasoline. Through the two tanks on board, one for CNG, the other for gasoline, the driver can select the fuel he wants to use.
Existing cars can also be converted. Cars burn compressed natural gas is properly carried out without compromising performance handicap. However, the conversion of a gasoline powered car is expensive and the large, high-pressure cylinders must be for the storage of natural gas will be installed in the> Car's trunk when retrofitting.
Some automakers are already offering vehicles equipped to use both fuels, natural gas and gasoline. You can do either one or the other fuels. An immediate changeover can be done by a simple switch of the shutdown. In the United States already has Honda Civic GX model. Volkswagen, Opel, Mercedes and Fiat to sell bi-fuel models in Europe. Other Europeans also make CNG models. U.S. will follow-American automobile manufacturer.
There aretwo remaining issues. How much natural gas reserves, the U.S. possess and how reliable are early price signals? Finally, imported natural gas mainly from the OPEC countries and is sold in the U.S. is already importing small quantities of natural gas.
The available data are presented in U.S. natural gas reserves at 230 TCF (trillion) cubic feet. Current consumption is about 2 tcf annually. The consumption of natural gas will increase obviously strong, when CNG is used widely disseminated in vehicles and will continue itsannual increase than the overall U.S. energy consumption continues to grow. Annual natural gas consumption to grow quickly in the vicinity of 4 TCF. With this rate of consumption known natural gas reserves will last for more than fifty years.
When buying a bi-fuel car, we must convince ourselves that CNG prices remain stable and competitive in order to recover the higher purchase price for the bi-fuel cars equipped. The natural gas industry has with the recent rise in prices forHeating oil to significantly increase the price of natural gas. How we can make a realistic assessment of future price stability of CNG? Past experience shows that the pipeline company that was sold gas to local distribution companies were fixing prices on the same destructive practices used by OPEC.
Realistically, we still have no effective protection from similar pricing policies in the future. We can therefore expect that the advertised lower CNG energy prices will notlast forever.
Only the U.S. Congress to intervene and protect consumers from exploitation. Finally, the gas companies positioned to wonder the U.S. Congress to natural gas as fuels. We already know that the national oil industry is closely lead the observance of OPEC, if domestically produced quantities of petrol and diesel. To find the U.S. Congress has the backbone and prohibit collusion price manipulation at the national level. The U.S. government must be extra carefulwith tax incentives or other incentives for natural gas powered cars. These incentives should be considered only if adequate consumer protection provisions are part of the agreement.