The U.S. Energy Information Administration took issue this week with an article published by Nature, in which Texas researchers said a detailed analysis of U.S. shale plays may be “bad news” for forecasters. Policymakers on Capitol Hill have said the glut of natural gas means the United States should transform itself as a major exporter of liquefied natural gas , arguing such deliveries may contribute to the rise of the country as an “energy superpower.” Tad Patzek, director of petroleum engineering at the University of Texas at Austin, said in the Nature report EIA assessments of shale were setting U.S. policymakers up “for a major fiasco.” In a Dec. 15 retort, EIA countered the Nature article was filled with “inaccurate and distorting reporting.” It further questioned Patzek’s role in the research […]