Colder-than-normal temperatures across much of the United States in mid-January increased natural gas consumption, resulting in the fourth-largest reported weekly withdrawal from natural gas storage in the Lower 48 states, according to EIA's Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report.
During the week ending January 24, 2025, stocks fell by 321 billion cubic feet (Bcf), which was nearly 70% more than the five-year (2020–24) average withdrawal for the same week in January. With withdrawals in January totaling nearly 1,000 Bcf, U.S. natural gas inventories are now 4% below their previous five-year average after being 6% above the five-year average at the start of the 2024–25 heating season, which began in November.
Recent cold snap results in fourth-largest withdrawal from underground natural gas storage
Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report
Note: Weekly net changes in natural gas storage are netted across the East, Midwest, Mountain, Pacific, and South-Central regions.
For the week ending January 24, the South-Central region of the United States, which accounted for approximately 35% of working gas in U.S. storage, reported its fourth-largest withdrawal of 136 Bcf. In the East and Midwest, the regions with the next-largest storage inventories, stocks fell by 10% in the East and by 11% in the Midwest over the week. The East and Midwest are also the U.S. regions with the most natural gas consumption in the winter to meet space heating demand.
Temperatures in the U.S. Southeast fell to record lows, and snow fell in parts of Louisiana, Texas and the panhandle of Florida, increasing natural gas consumption. During the week ending January 24, 2025, U.S. heating degree days (HDDs) reached 262, or 28% more than normal, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Population-weighted HDDs represent temperature deviations lower than 65°F and are weighted based on population distributions across the country. These data help us model and forecast energy consumption in different regions of the United States.
Cold weather also led to modest production declines in January because of freeze-offs, which occur when water and other liquids freeze at the wellhead or in natural gas gathering lines near production activities.
