NATURAL GAS FROM SHALE: Questions and Answers Why is Shale Gas Important? By Alex Chamberlin. written by STEER February 22, 2018. Why the Marcellus Shale is important for US oil and gas. Shale oil has been around for a long time, in fact, its discovery dates back to 14th century Switzerland and Austria. Shales are fine-grained sedimentary rocks that can be rich sources of petroleum and natural gas. Shale gas plays a key role in North America particularly due to the infrastructure and capabilities in place to transport it effectively. Over the past decade, the combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing has allowed access to large volumes of shale What is shale gas and why is it important? Shale gas is very important not just for supplying energy to the people as the demand increases, but for increasing national energy security. When the oil and gas boom of 2013 and 2014 occurred, “shale” became a buzzword seemingly overnight. This readiness is the reason why shale gas is much more relevant in North America and why "A widely anticipated global gas market … In this article, we’ll discuss natural gas production in the Marcellus Shale. Shale gas refers to natural gas that is trapped within shale formations. Why Is Shale So Important? With the advance of extraction technology, shale gas production has led to a new abundance of natural gas supply in the United States over the past decade, and is expected to continue to do so for the foreseeable future.