Natural Gas: From 'Bridge Fuel' to 'Backup' to 'Backbone'

SUGAR LAND--August 25, 2025--Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--At various times in the not-too-distant past, natural gas was considered a "bridge fuel" as U.S. electric generators moved away from coal and awaited the arrival of cost-effective nuclear power. For renewable energy advocates during the Obama and Biden presidencies, advocates cast gas as the fuel necessary to back up intermittent generation from renewable sources like wind and solar. But now, a growing chorus of energy industry leaders, and political officials, have deemed it the "backbone" of the U.S. energy system, today and in the future.