However, environmental and technological concerns are real – and this could see these novel sources of energy locked away for many years to come.
The EIA study was on global shale gas resources outside the US. It found that 48 shale basins across 32 countries hold technically recoverable shale gas resources of nearly 170 trillion cubic metres (tcm). This is enough gas to boost global gas reserves by a staggering 40pc.
What's more, the report is only an initial estimate, as it leaves out gas-rich regions in the Middle East and Russia.
In the UK, the technically recoverable shale gas resources could be more than double current North Sea reserves. However, Britain’s first test well, which was being drilled by Cuadrilla near Blackpool in Lancashire, has been suspended.
This followed a magnitude 1.5 earth tremor – the second in two months.
The gas is released by fracturing the rocks using high-pressured water in a process known as "hydraulic fracking". Fears are that this process could have triggered to the tremor, but tests are ongoing.
There are also substantial reserves in Wales – and there have been calls for the Welsh Government to form a policy on shale gas exploration.
The fracking process involves fluids and other components such as sand being injected into a well bore under high pressure to force the release gas from rock formations. Simply, it is the use of hydraulic pressure to fracture gas-bearing rock, which allows it to be pumped to the surface.
However, there are still significant environmental concerns about the process, particularly the impact of such fracturing techniques on the water table. There have even been reports of natural gas coming through household water taps in certain parts of the US, and a documentary about the environmental implications in parts of the US called GasLand was even nominated for an Oscar this year.
Despite these concerns, the US industry has charged ahead. Natural gas from shale formations comprised 23pc of total US production in 2010, but other countries have been more cautious. BHP Billiton announced its largest acquisition ever on Friday – this was shale gas group Petrohawk.
In March, France ordered a ban on shale oil and gas drilling until two separate government reports are published in June. This was prompted by public concern over the environmental impact.
Climate change and energy minister Charles Hendry has cautioned that UK planning rules could stand in the way of developers who want to start developments in the UK.
"Some of it is under very heavily populated areas of the country [and] there has to be approval given from people whose land is being drilled underneath and this could make things much more complicated," Mr Hendry said. "Approval from landowners is not required in the United States."
Despite the environmental concerns, shale gas is a very promising future source of energy – especially for countries with large reserves such as China, Poland, Libya, Mexico, Brazil, Algeria and Argentina.
Successful and safe development of the reserves will boost energy security for producer countries and reduce gas prices globally by increasing supply.
Assumptions used in the EIA report include a recovery factor of just 20pc to 30pc, but technological breakthroughs could increase recovery rates further.
But lessons learned in the US will be very important for getting the right balance between energy and environmental security.