ADVERTISEABOUT USSUBMIT A STORYSUBSCRIBETERMS OF USEPRIVACY POLICY
Visit our family of Brands

Podcast: Houston energy tech leader on breaking down industry silos, sustainable digitization

listen now

Ken Nguyen, principal technical program manager at bp, joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss the company's new partnership with NASA. Photo courtesy of bp

Ken Nguyen oversees the implementation of new technologies at bp, which has its United States headquarters in Houston, and that includes software and hardtech, from cybersecurity to the digitization of the industry, which is an integral part of bp's energy transition plan.

"For bp, we do feel like as we transition as an international oil and gas company into an integrated energy company and we lean into the energy transition, the adoption of new technology is a critical part of making that viable for the planet and for the company," he says on the Houston Innovators Podcast.

According to Nguyen, principal technical program manager at bp, the company has invested its resources into exploring energy transition technologies like electric vehicle charging — including opening a fast-charging station at its Houston office — and renewable energy, including a solar farm about 10 miles northeast of Corpus Christi.

Another technology bp is keen on is digital twin technology, which can be crucial for enhancing safety for bp personnel and reducing emissions.

Nguyen says digital twin technology "allows us to be able to design and mirror scenarios with real-time variables, such as weather, off-take demands, and volatility."

Recently, in order to explore innovation within these technology verticals, bp and NASA entered into a Space Act Agreement with NASA.

"Houston has always been known as the Space City, and we're also known as the Energy Capital of the World, but there hasn't always been collaboration," Nguyen says. "The challenges that NASA is facing is very similar to the challenges that the oil industry faces — we operate in very harsh environments, safety is the most critical aspect of our operation, and now the economic business model for NASA has changed."

Nguyen explains that while both bp and NASA are navigating similar challenges and changes within their industry, they are going about it in different ways. That's where the opportunity to collaborate comes in.

The partnership, which is still new and not fully fleshed out, will look at collaborative innovation into a few focus areas to start out with, including hydrogen storage and development, AI and general intelligence, robotics, and remote operations

"Houston continues to excel — in energy production and in space exploration — but by coming together," Nguyen says, "and for us to be able to tap into (NASA's) knowledge is tremendous. And we, within oil and gas, have a unique set of skills to blend into that with the hopes being that the city becomes this incubator for technology. The potential is there."

From Your Site Articles
Wogbe Ofori, founder and chief strategist of WRX Companies, joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss hardtech and Houston as an energy transition city. Photo via LinkedIn

Energy transition in Houston is going to 'take time and be hard'

Q&A

The energy transition has momentum, according to Wogbe Ofori. But there's still a ways to go.

Ofori, the founder and chief strategist of WRX Companies, is an adviser to Nauticus Robotics and strategist to Intuitive Machines and Jacobs, he's also served as a mentor across the local innovation community. He's narrowed in on hardtech and has has gotten a front-row seat to observing what's happening in Houston amid the energy transition, as he explains on this week's episode of the Houston Innovators Podcast.

Listen to the episode and read an excerpt below.

EnergyCapital: Looking back on some of the recent trends of the energy transition, what have you observed?

Wogbe Ofori: The energy transition has been something that — through the last hype cycle that started in the second half of 2020 and lasted until the first quarter of 2022 — was part of that momentum along with Web3. Now, the energy transition is continued as Web3 has fallen off a cliff and now been replaced by AI, but the energy transition is continued. Where I think moving into the next major stage where now it’s time for them to actually be proven out. And these things are hard and take time to be proven out and these technologies to mature. Then for the products and services that are derived from them, to really find the right place within the market and the right use cases. The idea that there is some sort of silver bullet — whether it be hydrogen or something else — that's going to solve the problem for all use cases is completely unrealistic. The issue is that a lot of folks especially the big energy players — the O&G majors here — they know that.

EC: So, what does this next stage look like?

WO: Now we're moving into what I think is a really interesting period where it's going to be, “well do we really have the legs for this race?” Because we sprinted, and everybody got really excited. Now you starting to hear, “well you know some investors are a little worried that cleantech 2.0 might suffer some of the same fate as cleantech 1.0.” How do we avoid that? Will investors have the patience to continue to make investments into energy transition plays for the longer term, because we’re going to need that to make these transitions. It's not going to happen overnight.

EC: Where does Houston come in on all this?

WO: Well the other big question that’s being asked around is, “Can Houston actually lead this?” It's difficult for an incumbent to disrupt itself. We’ve been positioning ourselves as moving from the energy capital of the world to the energy transition capital. I'm all for it, and I'm 100 percent behind it. Now we are just at the place where we're really going to start to see the difference between those who were caught up in the excitement of the energy transition, and those who really have the faith to see this thing through. The ones who do have the faith to see this through are going to create some fantastic companies that are going to create real value and that will materially change the way we live. But it’s going to take time and be hard.

Square Robot's Houston office has the ability to showcase the technology to its potential customers. Photo courtesy of Square Robot

Boston-based tech company grows Houston team to deliver robotics to energy industry

do the robot

The robots are coming. Although the rise of Chat GPT has frightened plenty of professionals, we’re not on the precipice of the singularity just yet. And some of Houston’s coolest robots are contained in above-ground tanks, simply doing jobs that are too expensive and difficult for humans. The mechanical helpers in question come courtesy of Square Robot.

Square Robot co-founder and chief technology officer Jerome Vaganay started the company in 2016 in Boston. The company opened its Houston office in August of 2019.

“A lot of our partners and client base is out of here,” says director of operations, Matt Crist.

Karishma Prasad, director of technical operations, who joined the team in Houston earlier this year, adds “It’s a great centralized place for us. Houston is a great hub both nationally and internationally. There is so much energy transition innovation happening here.”

Square Robot is indeed a robotics company, but it trades in a very specific type of robot. The SR-1 is an innovative tank inspector.

“Since the ‘60s there’s been a traditional way of going into a tank. People would go inside and clean it with a variety of products," Crist explains. "Once it was clean, they would come in and inspect it repair it and that could take months.”

In fact, it could often cause a 15 or 16-week outage, he says.

Square Robot’s brainstorm was to take the human element out of the process. In other words, robots can do the job more safely, efficiently and quickly than a human ever could by collecting 18,000 data points per square foot, while allowing the product — most often diesel — to stay in the tank.

Square Robot saves those vast weeks of time, but perhaps even more importantly, says Prasad, “We’re avoiding emissions being released into the atmosphere.”

With its key location in Houston, Square Robot has worked with most of the major names in the energy world, including ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, and Crist’s former employer, Phillips 66.

The latest robot is the SR-3, which is currently being tested in Houston. Curious webwatchers can see its progress on Square Robot’s website. Unlike the flagship SR-1, the new robot boasts a side launcher that allows it to be completely immersed in a tank before being launched.

But perhaps the most exciting thing about Square Robot’s 15-human Houston office is its test tank. There, potential partners can see exactly what the company’s ingenious creation can do. Square Robot will participate in ILTA, the International Operating Conference & Trade Show, which takes place from May 21-24. On the 24th, the company will host an open house from noon to 3 p.m. to allow potential users to see the SR-3 in action in the 42-foot-long test tank.

Square Robot will complete its hundredth tank inspection in May. It is also growing beyond the oil and gas world to include work with the power industry and was recently selected as a finalist in the Incubatenergy Lab Start Up program. This is one robot that we will happily allow to take over formerly all-too-human responsibilities.

Square Robot has a team of 15 in Houston. Photo courtesy of Square Robot

---

This article originally ran on InnovationMap.


Ad Placement 300x100
Ad Placement 300x600

CultureMap Emails are Awesome

Property Showcase

New 160MW battery storage project comes online in Houston

powered on

Colorado-based energy storage company SMT Energy and North Carolina-based software company FlexGen have begun operations of Houston IV, a 160-megawatt utility-scale battery storage facility that aims to support the ERCOT grid.

The companies delivered the project in just six weeks, according to a news release. Mississippi-based Irby Construction Company served as the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) partner, and CenterPoint Energy will serve as the interconnecting utility.

“FlexGen’s distinctive combination of software automation, our remote operations center, and on-the-ground field expertise all work together to accelerate battery deployment,” Jason Rislov, SVP of operations at FlexGen, said in the release. “What used to take 25-plus weeks took us six. That time saved translates directly into giving the grid and consumers what they need most right now: a more reliable, resilient energy system.”

Houston IV is one of more than 12 projects that SMT and FlexGen have built to connect to ERCOT, according to Energy Storage News.

“Bringing a 160-MW battery storage facility online in just six weeks required disciplined planning, seamless coordination, and an unwavering focus on safety and quality,” Shaun Coleman, project manager at Irby Construction, said in a news release. “The SMT Energy, FlexGen, and Irby Construction teams coordinated engineering, procurement, and construction to keep every workstream aligned, identify challenges early, and maintain safety and quality at an accelerated pace. That integration is critical, not only to delivering projects quickly, but also to ensuring battery storage facilities perform reliably over the long term.”

Houston IV is expected to store and provide enough electricity to power 8,800 homes in Texas annually. In March, SMT Energy secured $135 million in funding for the project from Macquarie and KeyBanc Capital Markets as joint lead arrangers. SMT and FlexGen broke ground to signal the start of the process in May.

In 2023, SMT Energy and joint venture partner SUSI Partners also announced plans to add 10 battery storage projects to Texas, which would double capacity from 100 megawatts to 200 megawatts in the Houston and Dallas areas.

Meet the 80+ startups pitching at Houston Energy and Climate Week

Pitch Lineup

One of the highlights from Houston Energy and Climate Week is hearing directly from the up-and-coming founders working to reshape the energy landscape.

This year, dozens of startups from Brazil to Berkeley and from right here in the Bayou City will compete for cash prizes and bragging rights while showcasing their concepts at HECW pitch events. Here's who's pitching at some of the week's signature competitions. Check back after the week wraps to see who takes home the top prizes.

Cypher Pilotathon and Startup Showcase — Sept. 15 at POST Houston

At the Cypher Pilotathon, founders will give their best 7-minute pilot pitches to industry experts and a live audience, followed by Q&A. This year's event will center around the theme, "The NEW Energy Industrial Revolution." Here's who's pitching:

  • Houston-based Aeromine Technologies, a distributed wind turbine company
  • San Francisco-based Ammobia, which develops low-carbon, energy source-agnostic ammonia
  • Birmingham, Alabama-based Ashipa Electric, a renewable energy semiconductor and microgrid manufacturer
  • Houston-based BigMachine AI, an AI engineer for industrial projects
  • Houston-based Corrolytics, which has developed corrosion detection technology
  • São Paulo, Brazil-based GLR Tech, which has developed a compact, scalable, low-cost platform for industrial emissions control
  • Monreal-based Green Graphite Technologies, which produces battery-grade graphite in a cost-effective and sustainable manner
  • Boston-based KIRA, which converts industrial wastewater into ultrapure water and solids
  • Edinburgh-based Mocean Energy, which works to deliver renewable ocean energy to power offshore industry
  • Los Angeles-based Mote, which works to convert agricultural and forestry waste into clean energy
  • Berkeley-based Oleo, which is developing a biomanufacturing platform to transform biomass waste into carbon-negative, cost-competitive oil feedstocks for advanced fuels
  • Oslo, Norway-based OTee, an automation machinery manufacturer
  • Houston-based Resollant, which is working to produce battery-grade graphite and ultra-low-cost hydrogen
  • Tulsa-based RyuGen Energy Solutions Inc., which works to turn underused commercial power into distributed AI infrastructure
  • Berkeley-based Sunchem, which provides precision separation of critical metals from sources including e-waste, evaporator scrap, solar panels, and mining ores and concentrates

Twenty-two other startups will participate in the startup showcase. See the full list here.

Greentown Climatetech Summit — Sept. 16 at the Continental Club

Ten Greentown startups will compete for $25,000 in prizes at Greentown Climatetech Summit's signature pitch event. Judges include Dave Dreessen, of Chevron Technology Ventures’ Future Energy Fund, and Jon Greene, of New Climate Ventures. Here's who's pitching:

  • Houston-based AMPeers, which manufactures high-temperature superconducting wire for high-power electrification infrastructure
  • Detroit-based AmHyTech, which enables ambient-condition liquid ammonia handling for fertilizer and fuel applications
  • Houston- and Zurich-based Biosimo, which converts biomass-based ethanol into lower-carbon acetic acid and acetyls
  • Houston-based Capwell Services Inc., which captures methane from low-flow oil and gas vents and returns it to market
  • Cleveland- and Ghana-based Cocoa Potash, which extracts potassium carbonate and fertilizer from cocoa, coconut, and palm-nut waste
  • Houston-based Solidec, which electrolyzes air, water, and electricity into onsite hydrogen peroxide.
  • Houston-based Focis AI, which converts industrial laser scans into a queryable digital twin of refineries and plants
  • Calgary-based Kanin Energy, which develops and finances waste heat to power projects for industrial clients
  • San Francisco-based FelixFusion, which models grid connection points so developers can validate interconnection in minutes
  • Houston-based Pike Robotics, which deploys its Wall-Eye robot to inspect hazardous tanks without taking assets offline

TEX-E Student Innovators will also pitch earlier in the day-long event, and an additional five Greentown startups will compete for $1,000 during the Lightning Pitch Competition. Find more information here.

Rice Alliance Energy Tech Venture Forum — Sept. 17 at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business

Houston-based companies Aquanta Vision, Capwell Services and Deep Anchor Solutions will be joined by startups from around the world to compete to be named one of the 10 Most Promising Companies at the 23rd Energy Tech Venture Forum. Additional companies will participate in office hours.

See the full list of nearly 50 companies pitching here.

Halliburton Labs Pitch Day — Sept. 18 at the Ion

Halliburton Labs Pitch Day brings together a curated group of early‑stage energy technology investors and 16 participating companies. The event is invitation‑only. Here's who's pitching:

  • Australia-based Aquafortus, which has developed a non-thermal liquid to liquid desalination technology for resource recovery from wastewater brine
  • Calgary-based Ayrton Energy, which has developed a proprietary technology that enables hydrogen to be stored within an organic liquid, which can be handled and transported like gasoline
  • Illinois-based Cache Energy, which is developing electrified heat and long-term energy storage
  • New York-based Cella, which is working to advance subsurface mineralization of CO2
  • Miami-based Chemergy, which has developed a patented process to convert wet organic and plastic wastes into green hydrogen
  • Tennessee-based Enexor BioEnergy, which is developing on-site waste-to-bioenergy conversion systems
  • Reno-based Espiku, which focuses on water and minerals recovery from industrially produced water
  • UK-based LiNa Energy, which is developing low-cost, solid-state sodium battery technology
  • Michigan-based Marel Power Solutions, which is developing advanced cooling technology to redefine power-stacks
  • California-based Mitico, which is developing technology to collect and purify carbon dioxide at the source, post-combustion, before it enters the atmosphere
  • Singapore-based Nandina REM, which turns end-of-life assets into new, reliable, high-performance carbon fiber materials for the aviation, aerospace and defense industries
  • California-based Noon Energy, which is developing a 100-plus-hour ultra-long-duration battery storage
  • Silicon Valley-based Proof Energy, which is commercializing next-generation metallic solid oxide fuel cell (M-SOFC) technology.
  • Berkeley-based Sunchem, which provides precision separation of critical metals from sources including e-waste, evaporator scrap, solar panels, and mining ores and concentrates
  • Singapore-based Sungreen, an advanced materials company pioneering nanotechnology-based coatings for high-efficiency, low-cost electrodes
  • Minneapolis-based Syncris, which is developing next-generation modular power systems designed for the most demanding environments
Read more about Houston Energy and Climate Week and its programming in Energy Capital's event preview.

KBR's Mission Technology Solutions spinoff awarded $1.1B NOAA contract

A Big Deal

Amid a major spinoff, Houston-based KBR's Mission Technology Solutions business has been awarded a five-year contract for up to $1.1 billion from NOAA’s National Weather Service to help predict and combat extreme weather conditions.

Under the follow-on Commercial Data Program National Mesonet Program (CDP NMP) contract, KBR will provide weather and observational data from commercial stations, university and research campuses, and other non-federal providers nationwide. The information collected will assist in predicting severe temperatures and high-impact weather conditions like extreme storms.

"This award underscores KBR's proven track record of delivering vital data that strengthens national forecasting capabilities," Todd May, KBR’s senior vice president of Mission Technology Solutions, said in a news release.

According to a separate release from NOAA, the contract expands upon KBR's existing relationship with the agency. KBR will work with about 70 private industry partners on services such as data recording, collection, aggregation and processing, and will lead the CDP NMP's "network of networks."

“NOAA gathers environmental information from a wide variety of sources, and a growing list of private industry partners have joined our agency to collect this vital data,” Ken Graham, director of NOAA’s National Weather Service, said in the release. “This agreement streamlines the process that turns raw data into the gold-standard forecasts that Americans depend on.”

KBR will utilize its Speed to Mission ImpactSM technology for the project to supply data from across regions, measurement types, and system configurations. Both KBR and NOAA say the expanded data collection contract will help the agency create more accurate and timely forecasts, particularly for severe weather and extreme events, while also creating a path for new weather-observation technologies.

KBR has supported the CDP NMP for more than nine years. The program will be managed in Greenbelt, Maryland.

"We're driving expanded integration of commercial sensor and data sources into this platform and are honored to know our work helps forecasters give their communities earlier warnings and more time to prepare for dangerous weather,” May added in a release.

KBR’s Mission Technology Solutions business will be rebranded as Trinzic after its planned spin-off, the company announced last month. The spin-off is expected to close in January 2027.

Trinzic will work as an independent, publicly traded company focused on technology and engineering services for the space and national security sector. KBR will remain a separate publicly traded company that will focus on sustainable technology and services to support the energy transition.

---

This article originally appeared on InnovationMap.com.

View All Listings