Gas and LNG come out from oil’s shadow, part 1: The early years
The first part of our fourth chapter on the history of oil looks at the origins of gas and LNG—once considered a nuisance, now a fuel of the future
The history of natural gas cannot be separated from the story of crude and the once-widespread use of another, now-obscure hydrocarbon: coal gas. Until relatively recently, exploration efforts tended to focus on oil, so many gas discoveries were accidental or even inconvenient. Just as refiners once considered gasoline to be a dangerous byproduct of kerosene manufacture, fit only for dumping in rivers, it was some time before gas could be regularly captured or utilised by drillers. Nevertheless, there were many early and localised examples of gas resources being used successfully on a large scale, most notably in the US in the 1880s. However, the key word is ‘localised’. Until the inventio
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy
