Where is all the natural gas in NM?

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Thousands of New Mexicans remain without natural gas and heat and it may be a few days before they all have it back.

How could the New Mexico Gas Company run out of natural gas, when New Mexico is one of the largest producing states in the nation?

While some 300 crews scramble to fix the problem in many parts of the state, the NM Gas Company said this was the result of uncommonly low temperatures that dropped the pressure in the system and a stretched supply that just could not keep up.

“Simply put, New Mexico does not produce gas, we are a gas distribution company,” New Mexico Gas Company Vice President Tom Domme said. “We simply purchase gas like most other utilities do off the interstate pipelines, then we distribute it. We do not produce gas.”

The NM Gas Company said the natural gas produced in the four corners is also piped around the state but demand outpaced supply.

Domme said even though they have spent a lot of money dealing with this outage, your bills should not be affected. They also say if your gas is out do not try and fix it yourself, let the crews do it.

There is a hearing scheduled Monday at the round-house.

Senator Jeff Bingaman, who chairs the U.S. Senate Energy Committee, said it has raised some questions about the reliability of our natural gas supply.