By Gopalakrishnan Ravichandran
Natural gas is used to generate electricity, heat homes and buildings, and power vehicles. It is also a raw material in various industrial processes.
In this graphic, creator Gopalakrishnan Ravichandran ranks natural gas reserves by country. He uses data from the bp Statistical Review, as of September 2023.
Russia Has the Biggest Reserves
Natural gas, coal, and oil have formed over millions of years as plant and animal remains mixed with sediment and undergo pressure and heat.
A natural gas reservoir is a subsurface area where natural gas is trapped within porous and permeable rock formations and confined by impermeable rock or water barriers.
Proven reserves represent the volume of natural gas that can be recovered under existing economic and operating conditions. These reserves can increase when new, successful exploratory wells are drilled.
Russia has the biggest reserves, with 37.4 trillion cubic meters or around 20% of the global total. Iran, in second, has 17% of the total reserves, followed by Qatar with 13%.
| Country | Reserve (tcm) | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
 Russian Federation |
37.4 | 19.9% |
 Iran |
32.1 | 17.1% |
 Qatar |
24.7 | 13.1% |
 Turkmenistan |
13.6 | 7.2% |
 US |
12.6 | 6.7% |
 China |
8.4 | 4.5% |
 Venezuela |
6.3 | 3.3% |
 Saudi Arabia |
6.0 | 3.2% |
 United Arab Emirates |
5.9 | 3.1% |
 Nigeria |
5.5 | 2.9% |
Asia dominates reserves by region, with six countries among the top 10. Meanwhile, Africa, Europe, North America, and South America each have one representative.
Despite being the 5th in proven reserves, the U.S. is the biggest natural gas producer, with 23% of the global share. Russia comes second (17.4%), with Iran in 3rd place (6.4%).
In addition, the U.S. is also the leading gas exporter, exporting 82.7 billion cubic meters of gas via pipelines in 2022 and 104.3 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Russia was the second-largest natural gas exporter globally, followed by Qatar and Norway.
