Southwestern Energy announced Jan. 21 it is laying off 1,100 employees. Of those, more than 300 Houston-area employees associated with the headquarters in Spring will be affected. The layoffs are due to the decline in natural gas prices. “Natural gas prices have continued to decline over the past year, creating conditions where cash flow to fund projects will be significantly lower than it has been the past few years,” said Southwestern Energy in a statement. The company has decided to reduce the company’s overall workforce to retain its competitiveness in the current economic environment. “We regret having to make this decision and we thank all of our employees who were affected by today’s announcement for their contributions to Southwestern Energy Company,” the statement said. The company announced it is providing outplacement services, employee assistance, severance and other benefits to affected employees and their families. Outplacement services include individual career coaching, job leads, job search tools and training on use of social media for job searches, said Susan Richardson, director of corporate affairs for Southwestern Energy.