Energy Insights: Normalized Natural Gas Use per Commercial Gas Consumers
This AGA Energy Analysis looks at the average use and behavior of a commercial gas consumer, including an increase in the total number of commercial gas consumers, with a decline in normalized average use.
- Normalized natural gas use per commercial gas consumer fell 21 percent between 1971 and 2023, or 0.46 percent per year for 51 years.
- In 2023, 5.62 million commercial consumers or businesses relied on natural gas. The total number of commercial consumers using natural gas has grown by 1% per year since 1971.
- Normalized natural gas use per commercial consumer was 613 Mcf in 2023. This is down from the peak of 803 Mcf in 1973.
- Commercial businesses saw a lot of volatility in normalized gas use between 2018 and 2022. This activity is likely the result of increased economic activity or lack thereof during 2020-2021.
Supplemental Materials from AGA’s Normalized Use per Consumer Model
Methodology
- Non-weather-dependent appliance volumes are assumed to match the average
consumption during July and August, with the excess consumption in other months
assumed to be weather-sensitive. - Weather-sensitive heating demand is normalized by multiplying load by the ratio of 30-
year normal heating degree days over actual annual calendar heating degree days.
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