Gas Supply and Requirements in California

Abstract

To understand properly the gas supply and demand situation in California one significant fact must be kept in mind: To the California householder, gas is the universal fuel. He looks to the state's gas utility companies to supply him with fuel for househeating, cooking and water heating, and to a somewhat lesser extent, refrigeration. His dependence on gas is traditional since California, unlike many other parts of the country, does not have major coal deposits. California's cities are young, almost as young as the petroleum industry which supplies them with natural gas. The major portion of the state's growth has taken place since the turn of the century, particularly in the more populous southern half. The two world wars, the intervening period of boom and depression, and the post-World War II period have seen an unprecedented population increase and the development of an enormous west coast industrial empire. Fuel for both domestic and industrial growth has been supplied almost exclusively by the expanding petroleum industry through equally expanding facilities of the state's gas utility companies. To tell the story of the growth in California's gas requirements is the prime purpose of this paper. Increase in Requirements California's modern history is the story of many booms, but it was not until the first World War that its major industrialization and attendant domestic growth began. In 1920, the beginning of Southern California's greatest period of development, the state's population was 3,426,861. During the ensuing 30 years, population more than tripled to a present total of 10,586,223. The most rapid increase in population has occurred in the southern portion of the state, including Los Angeles and contiguous territory. The 14 counties comprising the southern half of California have increased in population from 1,512,839 in 1920 to 6,095,394 in 1950. Though the increase in California's population has been rapid, the use of natural gas has more than kept pace. In 1935 there were 1,486,640 general service customers in the state who consumed 71,638,340 Mcf of gas. In 1950, there were 2,880,180 who used 249,315,565 Mcf, an increase in the number of customers of 93 per cent but an increase in gas consumption of 248 per cent. Obviously, the increased number of gas users does not tell the whole story of the firm gas load increase. To further illustrate the increased gas usage by California householders, the average general service customer in Southern California used about 83 Mcf of gas during the relatively cold year of 1949.