Massive discoveries of natural gas in the Marcellus and Utica shale regions of the US increased the supply side of the fundamental equation for the energy commodity. At the same time, technological advances in extracting the gas from the crust of the earth, together with a supportive energy policy under the Trump administration caused the cost of production to decline.
Meanwhile, replacing coal with natural gas for power generation and the ability to send liquid natural gas around the globe by ocean vessels expanded the demand side of the natural gas market. In 2016, the