U.S. Natural Gas Production Hits New Records as Demand Surges | OilPrice.com
Tsvetana Paraskova
What I Cover Tsvetana Paraskova is an energy and commodities journalist who has contributed to Oilprice.com for nearly a decade, covering global energy markets, commodities,…
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By Tsvetana Paraskova – Oct 28, 2026, 5:00 PM CDT
- U.S. natural gas production is set to hit consecutive records, reaching 112.2 Bcf/d in 2026 and a projected 116.1 Bcf/d in 2027.
- Soaring LNG exports and AI data center demand are driving production growth, particularly in the Permian and Haynesville basins.
- Producers are consolidating to capitalize on rising demand, highlighted by EQT’s acquisition of Range Resources, while stronger output could push Henry Hub prices lower in 2027.
U.S. natural gas production is on track to close a second consecutive year with record-high natural gas output as producers respond to demand signs both at home and overseas.
Soaring demand for powering data centers in the United States and rising liquefied natural gas exports amid expanding liquefaction capacity, as well as surging global demand for spot LNG cargoes in the absence of Qatar’s gas due to the Iran war, are pushing American natural gas production higher this year.
Output is on track to beat in 2026 the record set in 2025 as more associated gas is being produced in the Permian basin along with oil, and operators boost gas output in the Haynesville basin, which is close to LNG export terminals and major domestic industrial gas users, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) says.
Rising production will more than offset higher LNG exports, resulting in an average Henry Hub spot price for natural gas of $3.16 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in 2027, down by 9% compared to 2026, the EIA’s latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) showed earlier this month.
For this year, U.S. dry natural gas production is set to jump to 112.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) from 107.64 bcfd last year. In 2027, U.S. natural gas production is forecast to further grow to 116.13 bcfd to another record high, the EIA’s latest monthly estimates showed. Related: UBS Sees $110 Brent by Year-End as Gulf Flows Stay Below Prewar Levels
U.S. LNG exports averaged 17.4 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in the first six months of the year, 23% higher compared to the same period in 2025, as export capacity jumped and boosted shipments to the fastest pace since exports began a decade ago.
In the domestic market, data centers have turned to additional gas-fired power generation to support the booming AI market.
Amid rising gas demand, both in the U.S. and overseas, American gas producers are raising production and entering in strategic transactions to scale and expand.
Just this week, EQT Corporation and Range Resources announced a definitive merger agreement, under which EQT will buy Range in an all-stock transaction that will create America’s leading natural gas company with a pro-forma enterprise value over $50 billion.
“North American gas markets have shifted from producer-push to demand-pull, and this deal puts EQT firmly at the heart of that transition,” said Lydia Walker, Senior Research Analyst on Wood Mackenzie’s Lower 48 upstream team.
“Range cements EQT’s position as the supplier of choice for Appalachian power generation and data centre growth, adding the scale, inventory and liquids diversification needed to serve that demand for decades to come,” Walker added.
A day later, EQT raised its 2026 production guidance by about 90 Bcfe, due to better-than-expected benefits from compression investments improving both existing and new wells and shallowing decline rates, while it reduced its full-year capital spending guidance by $25 million.
Thanks to “strong performance to date”, EQT also raised its full-year 2026 total sales volume guidance to 2,375 – 2,450 Bcfe.
Meanwhile, Range Resources raised its third-quarter natural gas production by 11% from a year earlier, and year-to-date output by 5% compared to January-September 2025.
“We have considerable momentum across our business and will be exiting 2026 in the strongest position in Range’s history,” CEO Dennis Degner said.
“With EQT, we will have improved market access, best-in-class inventory, enhanced cash flow generation, and fortified resiliency to drive profitable growth and shareholder value creation through commodity cycles.”
Expand Energy, currently the largest U.S. natural gas producer before the EQT-Range deal is completed early next year, said this week in the Q3 earnings release that it is positioning itself for a “historic wave of structural domestic demand growth” underway.
“A new era of demand-pull replaces historical supply-push dynamics across the U.S.,” Expand Energy said.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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Tsvetana Paraskova
What I Cover Tsvetana Paraskova is an energy and commodities journalist who has contributed to Oilprice.com for nearly a decade, covering global energy markets, commodities,…
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