> Another reason for increasing gas demand might be related to global drought. [...] Maybe other countries have similar problem
AFAIK, that's also the case right now here in Brazil. The rain in most hydro power basins has been much lower than the long-term average, and to prevent the reservoirs from becoming empty (which would be a disaster, not only because of other water uses like drinking and irrigation, not to mention the damage to the ecosystem from the rivers becoming dry, but also because there is not nearly enough non-hydro power generation capacity to power the whole country), there has been an increase in the use of thermal power generators, many of them powered by natural gas.
AFAIK, that's also the case right now here in Brazil. The rain in most hydro power basins has been much lower than the long-term average, and to prevent the reservoirs from becoming empty (which would be a disaster, not only because of other water uses like drinking and irrigation, not to mention the damage to the ecosystem from the rivers becoming dry, but also because there is not nearly enough non-hydro power generation capacity to power the whole country), there has been an increase in the use of thermal power generators, many of them powered by natural gas.