America’s New Manufacturing Powerhouse: Why the Shale Crescent Will Lead the Next Boom

In this episode of Energy Newsbeat – Conversations in Energy , host Stu Turley sits down with Nathan Lord, President of Shale Crescent USA, to unpack why Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania may be the world’s most overlooked manufacturing and energy powerhouse. Nathan explains how the region’s abundant, low-cost natural gas creates a world-class advantage for petrochemicals, power generation, and reshoring manufacturing from Europe and China—while also cutting emissions by building near the fuel source. They dive into Europe’s deindustrialization, the risks of net-zero policies that export industry (and emissions) to China, the coming surge in gas demand from LNG and AI data centers, and why winning the “fuel race” is the key to U.S. energy security, grid reliability, and long-term prosperity for American workers. We wrote an introduction to this interview for the Energy News Beat Substack, and it included data compiled by Nathan and the Shale Crescent team. America's Strategic Energy Asset: Why the Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania Region Must Be Prioritized for Power, Prosperity, and National Security I look forward to more podcasts and interviews with CEOs from Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania to discuss this significant, strategic reindustrialization effort for the United States. Thank you, Nathan, for stopping by the Podcast, and I am looking forward to our follow-up conversations! - Stu Check out the Shale Crescent USA website here: https://shalecrescentusa.com/ Connect with Nathan Lord on his LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-lord-230a99a9/ Highlights of the Podcast 00:00 - Intro 01:01 – What Is Shale Crescent USA? 02:53 – Marcellus Gas Volumes & Global Ranking 04:20 – Where Global Manufacturers Go Next 05:35 – Trump, the Saudi Crown Prince & LNG Dreams 06:02 – Maximizing the Molecule: From Gas to Booster Seats 07:16 – Germany’s Net-Zero Deindustrialization 09:06 – Europe’s Energy Insecurity vs. U.S. Shale Advantage 11:15 – Energy Security at Home, Energy Dominance Abroad 12:12 – How Shale Crescent Lands Global Projects 13:07 – Stu’s Two-Track World & China’s Manufacturing Pull 14:54 – Can the U.S. Beat China on Manufacturing Costs? 17:51 – Onshoring, ESG & Emissions Reality 20:26 – Is ESG Fading? Cleanest Molecule Wins 21:51 – Rare Earths vs. “Rare Natural Gas” Advantage 23:08 – 50 Bcf of New Gas Demand: AI, LNG & Manufacturing 24:11 – Who’s Locking Up Molecules (and Who Isn’t) 26:02 – 1970s Lessons: Grandma First & Behind-the-Meter Power 28:30 – Avoiding Blackouts & Winning the AI Fuel Race 32:06 – Build on the Fuel Source: Speed to Power 35:53 – Gulf Coast + Shale Crescent: 80% of U.S. Gas & Storage Gaps 37:39 – Man-Made Energy Problems & Leadership 38:18 – How to Find Nathan & Shale Crescent USA 39:08 – Closing: From Rust Belt to Prosperity Full transcript will be on https://energynewsbeat.co/ Check out https://energynewsbeat.co/request-media-kit/