Professor Fred Beach | S3E3 | Science, Y’all! Professor Fred Beach is the Director of the Earth and Energy Resources graduate program within the Jackson School of Geosciences. Hear how taking things apart and putting them back together as a child matured into a lifelong curiosity and passion for science. Dr. Beach discusses his childhood growing up on a farm, his first career serving in the Navy, and his second career in academia. Tune in to hear all this and more!
It’s Going to Happen First in Texas with Nat Bullard (Part 2) We talk a lot about the grid of the future. The truth is, that future is already showing up in Texas.
It’s Going to Happen First in Texas with Nat Bullard (Part 1) Texas has plenty of energy stories. The harder part is finding the signal through the noise of endless filings.
Building a Solar Supply Chain in Texas with T1’s CEO Daniel Barcelo Solar accounts for 75% of new power globally and China makes almost all of it. Can entrepreneurs tip the scales in America’s favor?
Alice | ‘Hub City of South Texas’ and an Energy Powerhouse That Once Was When wildcatters struck oil in Jim Wells County in the 1920s, politicians in Alice, Texas saw opportunity beyond the oil patch. The town, which legend has it was named after the daughter of Richard King, the founder of King Ranch, adopted the slogan, “The Hub City of South Texas” due to its proximity to San Antonio to the north, the port of Corpus Christi to the east, and Laredo and the Mexican border to the south. The branding worked. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, Alice was a distribution hub for supplies and construction materials throughout south Texas. Drilling and service companies set up oil rig yards in town and employed locals.
Innovation and Investment in ERCOT: Recorded Live from GCPA Recorded at Gulf Coast Power Association’s Fall Conference, this conversation with four Texas technology innovators explored load growth, new technologies, and the future of the ERCOT grid.
S&P Global – Oil and gas to be big in energy, power markets through 2050: experts Surging power demand, driven by data centers and the need to serve energy-impoverished people in developing nations, require an “all of the above” strategy in which oil and gas continues to supply about half global needs, executives and experts said Sept. 12.
S&P Global – Data center growth in Texas often comes with generation: experts The Electric Reliability Council of Texas faces the challenge of integrating by 2030 as much as 188 GW of new large loads, much of it possibly inflexible data center load, which is prompting data centers to develop alongside new generation, experts say.
Mapping a Career in Energy, and Opportunities and Pitfalls Along the Way The challenge of meeting increased energy demand shaped a panel discussion hosted jointly by The University of Texas at Austin’s KBH Energy Center and Bracewell LLP Houston on Feb. 4. The event, titled “Energy in the New Year,” was moderated by Bracewell partner Scott Segal, co-chair of the firm’s Policy Resolution Group. Former Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, founding member of the KBH Energy Center, gave opening remarks, advocating for an approach to energy policy that includes renewable options along with fossil fuels. “Texas is leading the way with an ‘all of the above’ approach,” she said. “It has always led the country in oil and gas, but today it is also a top generator of wind and solar energy. This is the strategy that will provide true energy security, not only for the U.S. but for our foreign allies.” Panelists were Dax Sanders, president of Products Pipelines for Kinder Morgan; Jason Ryan, executive vice president for Regulatory Services and Government Affairs at CenterPoint Energy; and Jim Lucier, founding partner of Capital Alpha Partners, where he leads the energy, environmental, and macro strategy practices. Lucier said an executive order President Donald Trump signed Jan. 20 declaring a National Energy Emergency may be a step in the right direction. This order is a road map, hopefully clearing away the preconceptions and clearing out obstacles Jim Lucier” Permitting reform is key to that progress, Sanders said, noting today’s burgeoning natural gas demand requires a substantial increase in pipeline infrastructure. “It becomes difficult to risk capital on building pipelines when there’s uncertainty around permits that may cause delays,” he said. “What we need is reform with clear expectations so we have a clear path and timeline to getting to thumbs-up or down. Ryan agreed, noting infrastructure is a major challenge in meeting increased energy demand. CenterPoint forecasts that customer usage of natural gas could increase by another 30 billion cubic feet in its mid-continent footprint by the end of the decade, and power usage in Houston will continue to grow rapidly each year. The Path Forward “The growth in power usage is driven in part by the growth in population in Houston, but also by the electrification of fleets and at our port,” Ryan said. “We have the largest port in the country in foreign tonnage, and as you plug in those ships, that adds a tremendous amount of usage.” He said permitting reform would help CenterPoint in the process of expanding its facilities and undergrounding its system to improve resilience. Such reform may be on the horizon, said Lucier, noting the current administration is moving quickly. But progress will require legislators working together. “We need a true bipartisan coalition and true ‘all of the above’ legislation,” he said.