Statement from IHS on the New York Times article. It appears the Times got it wrong.

The Times' article “Insiders Sound Alarm Amid a Natural Gas Rush,” does not reflect the IHS position on shale gas.

 

Emails referenced in the article were written in 2008 and 2009, early in the understanding of the performance metrics for shale gas and have been proven completely wrong by events. One of the emails that was referenced in the article as from IHS was apparently written by someone misidentified as an IHS employee when in fact that person had not been employed by IHS for more than a year.

 

Unconventional technologies and resources have moved with great speed. There is much more information about the performance and potential of shale resources available today than in the past. Shale gas supplies have built up very rapidly and now are 25 percent of total U.S. gas supply, as costs have come down dramatically and experience and knowledge have progressed.

 

In February 2009, the IHS CERA report, “The Shale Gale,” stated that the “recent revolution in the production of unconventional shale gas” would result in “a substantial increase in shale production and reserves”’ and “a rapid growth of shale gas supply.”  Also in February 2009, IHS CERA’s study Rising to the Challenge said: “Unconventional gas will drive growth.”  

 

That was the IHS position then and it continues to be our position today.  Both of these reports were released well before the 2009 email cited in the NY Times story.

 

Thank you for contacting us so we can correct the erroneous and misleading information that was in the Times' article.

 

Let me know if you need anything else.

 

 

Ed Mattix

VP-Corporate Communications

IHS Inc.