The 2028 Natural Gas Crisis No One Sees Coming

The United States faces an impending, historic deficit in natural gas supply as surging demand from AI data centers collides with existing LNG export commitments. While current market pricing remains complacent, structural constraints in production, processing, and pipeline infrastructure suggest that supply will fall significantly short by 2028. Energy expert Matt Smith highlights that this mismatch will likely trigger volatile, convex increases in electricity prices, disproportionately affecting U.S. consumers. Because the country is depleting known gas resources rapidly, the most viable long-term solution involves an urgent pivot toward large-scale nuclear power, such as AP1000 reactors, and the expansion of residential solar to provide energy independence. Without immediate, coordinated investment in these alternatives, the reliance on natural gas for power generation will create a severe, systemic crisis by the end of the decade.