Figure 4. World natural gas demand. There is a major shift toward natural gas as the fuel of choice. As a result, world gas demand is projected to grow 77% to 161 Tcf/yr in 2020, and US gas demand is expected to grow by 55% to 34.7 Tcf/yr over this same period. EIA expects US gas demand to increase by only 1.6% during 2001. This is due to fuel switching by energy-intensive industries in response to high gas prices last winter, economic slowdown, and expectations that mild weather will continue. Industry started to reverse the switching process when natural gas prices receded below the cost of oil during late April. Anticipating a pickup in the US economy and continued moderate gas prices, EIA predicts a 4.4% increase in gas demand during 2002. International gas developments will continue to expand in concert with demand growth.