This is a list of countries by natural gas proven reserves based on The World Factbook. Based on data from BP at the end of 2009 proved gas reserves are dominated by three countries: Russia (24%), Iran (16%) and Qatar (14%). A study by Gaffney, Cline & Associates estimates Turkmenistan’s South Iolotan natural gas field reserve at 21.2 trillion cubic meters (tcm) - far above the BP estimate of 2.9 tcm for this field. This places Turkmenistan's reserves at 25.8 tcm, ahead of Qatar but still behind Iran. Due to constant announcements of shale gas recoverable reserves, as well as drilling in Central Asia, South America and Africa, deepwater drilling, estimates are undergoing frequent updates, with bias towards increases.
There is large discussion about the potential of shale gas reserves and large doubt about their economic and environmental sustainability, but it is clear that most of those reservoirs are still to be developed and discovered. In that sense the inventory of the gas proven reserves is likely to increase of size within the next years.
Rank | Country/Region | Natural gas proven reserves (m³) |
% of total | Date of information |
---|---|---|---|---|
Total | World | 300,000,000,000,000 | 100% | 1 January 2012 est. |
1 | Russia | 55,000,000,000,000 | 18.3% | 2010 est. |
2 | Iran | 33,500,000,000,000 | 11.1% | 1 January 2011 est. |
3 | Turkmenistan | 26,200,000,000,000 | 8.73% | 1 January 2012 est. |
4 | Qatar | 25,470,000,000,000 | 8.5% | 1 January 2010 est. |
5 | United States | 9,000,000,000,000 | 3.0% | 1 January 2011 est. |
6 | Saudi Arabia | 8,200,000,000,000 | 2.73% | 1 January 2012 est. |
7 | Azerbaijan | 6,071,000,000,000 | 2.02% | 1 January 2010 est. |
8 | Venezuela | 5,524,500,000,000 | 1.84% | 19 July 2011 |
9 | Nigeria | 5,246,000,000,000 | 1.75% | 1 January 2010 est. |
10 | Algeria | 4,502,000,000,000 | 1.37% | 1 January 2010 est. |
11 | Australia | 3,825,000,000,000 | 1.27% | 1 January 2012 est. |
12 | Iraq | 3,600,000,000,000 | 1.17% | 1 January 2012 est. |
13 | China | 3,100,000,000,000 | 1.02% | 1 January 2012 est. |
14 | Indonesia | 3,001,000,000,000 | 1.58% | 1 January 2010 est. |
15 | Kazakhstan | 2,407,000,000,000 | 1.27% | 1 January 2010 est. |
16 | Malaysia | 2,350,000,000,000 | 1.24% | 1 January 2010 est. |
17 | Norway | 2,313,000,000,000 | 1.22% | 1 January 2010 est. |
18 | United Arab Emirates | 2,250,000,000,000 | 1.18% | 1 January 2010 est. |
19 | Uzbekistan | 1,841,000,000,000 | 0.97% | 1 January 2010 est. |
20 | Kuwait | 1,798,000,000,000 | 0.95% | 1 January 2010 est. |
21 | Canada | 1,754,000,000,000 | 0.92% | 1 January 2010 est. |
22 | Egypt | 1,656,000,000,000 | 0.87% | 1 January 2010 est. |
23 | Libya | 1,539,000,000,000 | 0.81% | 1 January 2010 est. |
24 | Netherlands | 1,416,000,000,000 | 0.74% | 1 January 2010 est. |
25 | Ukraine | 1,104,000,000,000 | 0.58% | 1 January 2010 est. |
26 | India | 1,075,000,000,000 | 0.57% | 1 January 2010 est. |
27 | Oman | 849,500,000,000 | 0.45% | 1 January 2010 est. |
28 | Pakistan | 840,200,000,000 | 0.44% | 1 January 2010 est. |
29 | Israel | 800,000,000,000 | 0.42% | 1 January 2012 est. |
30 | Lebanon | 750,400,000,000 | 0.39% | 1 January 2010 est. |
31 | Romania | 726,000,000,000 | 0.39% | 1 January 2013 est. |
32 | Vietnam | 680,000,000,000 | 0.36% | 1 January 2010 est. |
33 | Yemen | 478,500,000,000 | 0.25% | 1 January 2010 est. |
34 | Trinidad and Tobago | 436,100,000,000 | 0.23% | 1 January 2010 est. |
35 | Argentina | 398,400,000,000 | 0.21% | 1 January 2010 est. |
36 | Brunei | 390,800,000,000 | 0.21% | 1 January 2010 est. |
37 | Brazil | 364,200,000,000 | 0.19% | 1 January 2010 est. |
38 | Mexico | 359,700,000,000 | 0.19% | 1 January 2010 est. |
39 | Thailand | 342,000,000,000 | 0.18% | 1 January 2010 est. |
40 | Peru | 334,100,000,000 | 0.18% | 1 January 2010 est. |
41 | United Kingdom | 292,000,000,000 | 0.15% | 1 January 2010 est. |
42 | Burma | 283,200,000,000 | 0.15% | 1 January 2010 est. |
43 | Angola | 271,800,000,000 | 0.14% | 1 January 2010 est. |
44 | Syria | 240,700,000,000 | 0.13% | 1 January 2010 est. |
45 | Papua New Guinea | 226,500,000,000 | 0.12% | 1 January 2010 est. |
46 | Timor-Leste | 200,000,000,000 | 0.10% | 1 January 2010 est. |
47 | Bangladesh | 195,400,000,000 | 0.10% | 1 January 2010 est. |
48 | Germany | 175,600,000,000 | 0.09% | 1 January 2010 est. |
49 | Poland | 164,800,000,000 | 0.09% | 1 January 2010 est. |
50 | Cameroon | 135,100,000,000 | 0.07% | 1 January 2010 est. |
51 | Mozambique | 127,400,000,000 | 0.07% | 1 January 2010 est. |
52 | Colombia | 112,000,000,000 | 0.06% | 1 January 2010 est. |
53 | Philippines | 108,700,000,000 | 0.06% | 1 January 2010 est. |
54 | Chile | 97,970,000,000 | 0.05% | 1 January 2010 est. |
55 | Bahrain | 92,030,000,000 | 0.05% | 1 January 2010 est. |
56 | Congo, Republic of the | 90,610,000,000 | 0.05% | 1 January 2010 est. |
57 | Sudan | 84,950,000,000 | 0.04% | 1 January 2010 est. |
58 | Cuba | 70,790,000,000 | 0.04% | 1 January 2010 est. |
59 | Italy | 69,830,000,000 | 0.04% | 1 January 2010 est. |
60 | Tunisia | 65,130,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
66 | Namibia | 62,290,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
64 | Denmark | 61,300,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
65 | Rwanda | 56,630,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
66 | Korea, South | 50,000,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
67 | Afghanistan | 49,550,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
68 | Serbia | 48,140,000,000 | 0.03% | 1 January 2010 est. |
69 | Equatorial Guinea | 36,810,000,000 | 0.02% | 1 January 2010 est. |
70 | New Zealand | 33,980,000,000 | 0.02% | 1 January 2010 est. |
71 | Croatia | 30,580,000,000 | 0.02% | 1 January 2010 est. |
72 | Cote d'Ivoire | 28,320,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
73 | Mauritania | 28,320,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
74 | Gabon | 28,320,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
75 | Ethiopia | 24,920,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
76 | Austria | 24,800,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
77 | Ghana | 22,650,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
78 | Japan | 20,900,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
79 | Slovakia | 14,160,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
80 | Ireland | 9,911,000,000 | 0.01% | 1 January 2010 est. |
81 | Georgia | 8,495,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
82 | Hungary | 8,098,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
83 | Ecuador | 7,985,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
84 | France | 7,079,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
85 | Tanzania | 6,513,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
86 | Taiwan | 6,229,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
87 | Turkey | 6,088,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
88 | Jordan | 6,031,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
89 | Bulgaria | 5,663,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
90 | Tajikistan | 5,663,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
91 | Somalia | 5,663,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
92 | Kyrgyzstan | 5,663,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
93 | Czech Republic | 3,072,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
94 | Guatemala | 2,960,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
95 | Belarus | 2,832,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
96 | Spain | 2,548,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
97 | Morocco | 1,501,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
98 | Benin | 1,133,000,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
99 | Congo, Democratic Republic of the | 991,100,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
100 | Greece | 991,100,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
101 | Albania | 849,500,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
102 | Barbados | 113,300,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2010 est. |
103 | South Africa | 27,160,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2006 est. |
104 | Macau | 300,000 | 0.00% | 1 January 2008 est. |
- Star denotes includes "recoverable portion of shale reserves"
Famous quotes containing the words list of, list, countries, natural, gas, proven and/or reserves:
“Religious literature has eminent examples, and if we run over our private list of poets, critics, philanthropists and philosophers, we shall find them infected with this dropsy and elephantiasis, which we ought to have tapped.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (18031882)
“Hey, you dress up our town very nicely. You dont look out the Chamber of Commerce is going to list you in their publicity with the local attractions.”
—Robert M. Fresco, and Jack Arnold. Dr. Matt Hastings (John Agar)
“Fame sometimes hath created something out of nothing. She hath made whole countries more than nature ever did, especially near the poles, and then hath peopled them likewise with inhabitants of her own invention, pigmies, giants, and amazons: yea, fame is sometimes like unto a mushroom, which Pliny recounts to be the greatest miracle in nature, because growing and having no root, as fame no ground of her reports.”
—Thomas Fuller (16081661)
“Some natural tears they dropped, but wiped them soon;
The world was all before them, where to choose
Their place of rest, and Providence their guide;
They, hand in hand, with wandering steps and slow
Through Eden took their solitary way.”
—John Milton (16081674)
“Shielded, what sorts of life are stirring yet:
Legs lagged like drains, slippers soft as fungus,
The gas and grate, the old cold sour grey bed.”
—Philip Larkin (19221986)
“Every New Year is the direct descendant, isnt it, of a long line of proven criminals?”
—Ogden Nash (19021971)
“...I want to see a film, they send the Israeli army reserves to escort me! What kind of life is this?”
—Golda Meir (18981978)