据世界石油9月1日报道，自2008年以来，横跨宾夕法尼亚州、西弗吉尼亚州和俄亥俄州的阿巴拉契亚盆地页岩地层的干天然气产量一直在增长，月产量最近创下了新的纪录。2020年12月，该地区的产量达到325亿立方英尺/日，2021年上半年的平均日产量为319亿立方英尺，是自2008年开始生产以来六个月内的最高平均值。阿巴拉契亚盆地包含两个页岩地层，马塞勒斯和尤蒂卡，阿巴拉契亚盆地在2021年上半年占美国所有干天然气产量的34%。就其自身而言，阿巴拉契亚盆地将在2021年上半年成为世界第三大天然气生产地，仅次于俄罗斯和美国其他地区。
2021年上半年创纪录的干天然气产量是由于管道输送能力的增长，使得阿巴拉契亚盆地生产的天然气能够进入其他需求市场，特别是中西部地区。从2008年到2020年，东北部的总管道输送能力从45亿立方英尺/日增加到245亿立方英尺/日，缓解了部分拥堵，并支持了该地区更高的天然气批发价格。外输能力的大部分增长发生在2014年至2020年之间，当时管道容量增加了16.5，其中大部分流向中西部。
从阿巴拉契亚到加拿大和东南部的管道运输能力也有所增加。美国东南部最近管道产能的扩张支撑了美国液化天然气出口的增长。
尽管自2014年以来，东北部以外的天然气管道容量每年都在增长，但增长速度已经放缓，而且最近没有跟上区域产量的增长。Mountain Valley管道是该地区目前正在建设的最大天然气管道，计划于2022年投入使用。该管道将天然气从西弗吉尼亚州西北部输送至弗吉尼亚州南部，将Equitrans传输系统延伸至跨洲天然气管道公司位于弗吉尼亚州格雷特纳附近的第5区165压气站。设计用于输送2.0亿立方英尺/日的天然气，旨在进一步缓解管道堵塞。夏末，该地区的天然气消耗量通常处于最低水平时，该地区的管道往往最堵塞。
黎泱 编译自 世界石油
原文如下：
Shale natural gas production in the Appalachian Basin sets records in first half of 2021
Dry natural gas production from shale formations in the Appalachian Basin that spans Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio has been growing since 2008, and monthly production has recently set new record highs. Production in the region reached 32.5 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in December 2020, and it averaged 31.9 Bcf/d during the first half of 2021, the highest average for a six-month period since production began in 2008. The Appalachian Basin contains two shale formations, Marcellus and Utica, which accounted for 34% of all U.S. dry natural gas production in the first half of 2021. align="justify"> Record-high dry natural gas production in the first half of 2021 was made possible by growth in pipeline takeaway capacity that allows natural gas produced in the Appalachian Basin to reach other demand markets, especially in the Midwest. From 2008 to 2020, total pipeline takeaway capacity from the Northeast increased from 4.5 Bcf/d to 24.5 Bcf/d, alleviating some congestion and supporting higher wholesale natural gas prices in the region. Most of the increase in takeaway capacity happened between 2014 and 2020, when pipeline capacity increased by 16.5 Bcf/d, much of which was directed to the Midwest.
Pipeline takeaway capacity from Appalachia to Canada and to the Southeast has also increased. Recent expansions of pipeline capacity in the Southeast are supporting growth in exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas.
Although natural gas pipeline capacity out of the Northeast has grown every year since 2014, the rate of increase has slowed and recently has not kept pace with growth in regional production. The Mountain Valley Pipeline is the largest natural gas pipeline currently being constructed in the region and is targeted to enter service in 2022. The pipeline will move natural gas from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia, extending the Equitrans transmission system to the Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Company’s Zone 5 compressor station 165 near Gretna, Virginia. It is designed to move 2.0 Bcf/d of natural gas and is intended to further alleviate pipeline congestion. Pipelines tend to be most full in the region during the late summer when consumption of natural gas within the region is typically at its lowest.