The benchmark U.S. natural gas price has nearly doubled over the past year. The front-month Henry Hub contract jumped from $2.406 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) at the beginning of September 2020 to as much as $4.606/MMBtu early on September 2, 2021. Prices have rallied despite the fact that the biggest gas-producing basin, Appalachia, saw in the first half of 2021 its highest average output since natural gas production in the Marcellus and Utica shale formations started in 2008. Appalachia is breaking production records, so why U.S. natural gas prices are soaring? Here’s why. U.S. natural gas production in the other shale basins is not recovering from the pandemic-induced slump last year as fast as in Appalachia. In the Permian, fewer oil-directed rigs are pumping less associated gas. Overall American dry natural gas production is rising. But it’s not increasing so quickly as to offset surging U.S. gas […]