In a report released by the National Energy Board, it’s been found that “rapid development of onshore US unconventional gas projects has increased American natural gas production.” For example, from 2007 to 2015, natural gas production from the Marcellus region increased from less than two billion bcf/d to over 16 bcf/d. As a result, the report maintained that natural gas exports from Canada to the U.S. have been in decline.
The report noted that “between 2007 and 2014, Canadian exports to the U.S. East region decreased by over 65 per cent, from 2.82 bcf/d to 0.95 bcf/d. Exports from Canada to the U.S. Midwest region have also decreased, from 5.05 bcf/d in 2011 to 3.90 bcf/d in 2014. “
“The increase in natural gas production in the U.S. has also led to pipeline modifications that have affected Canadian exports. For example, the Rockies Express Pipeline (REX) used to transport up to 1.8 bcf/d of natural gas eastward, from production in the U.S. Rockies to markets in the Midwest.”
However, as production of natural gas in the U.S. East increased, the REX was modified and now also moves natural gas westward from Ohio to Midwest markets. The report finished by noting that “this pipeline modification has further increased competition in the Midwest for Canadian exports.”