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

Houston energy transition events not to miss, expert commentary on climate crisis, and more things to know

take note

Houston energy transition folks — here's what to know to start your week. Photo via Getty Images

Editor's note: Start your week off strong with three quick things to catch up on in Houston's energy transition: a roundup of events not to miss, a new Houston energy executive to know, and more.

Events not to miss

Put these Houston-area energy-related events on your calendar.

    • Future of Energy Summit is Tuesday, February 6, at AC Hotel by Marriott Houston Downtown. Register.
    • The 2024 NAPE Summit is Wednesday, February 7, to Friday, February 9, at the George R. Brown Convention Center. It's the energy industry’s marketplace for the buying, selling and trading of prospects and producing properties. Register.
    • The De Lange Conference, taking place February 9 and 10 at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy, is centered around the theme “Brave New Worlds: Who Decides? Research, Risk and Responsibility” this year. Register.
    • The Future of Energy Across the Americas: Helping Lawyers Predict and Adapt — the 2024 Houston Energy Conference — is February 27 to March 1. Register.
    • CERAWeek 2024 is Monday, March 18, to Friday, March 22, in the George R. Brown Convention Center. Register.

    ​Commentary: Chris Wood, co-founder of Moonshot Compost, on loving the climate apocalypse​

    Chris Wood knows that the last thing anyone wants to be reminded of in 2024 is the impending climate apocalypse, but, as he writes in his guest column, "There is a scientific consensus that the world climate is trending towards uninhabitable for many species, including humans, due in large part to results of human activity."

    He cites a report that 93 percent “believe that climate change poses a serious and imminent threat to the planet.”

    "Until recently reviewing this report, I was unaware that 93 percent of any of us could agree on anything," he writes. "It got me thinking, how much of our problem today is based on misunderstanding both the nature of the problem and the solution?" Read more.

    New hire: Bracewell names new partner to advise clients on energy transition tax incentives

    Bracewell announced that Jennifer Speck has joined the firm's tax department as a partner in the Houston office. Speck will advise clients on energy transition tax incentives.

    Some of her experiences include onshore and offshore wind, solar, carbon capture, clean hydrogen and clean fuel projects. She recently served as senior manager of tax and regulatory compliance at Navigator CO2 Ventures LLC. She graduated in 2010 with a B.F.A. in mental health psychology from Northeastern State University, and received her J.D., with honors, from The University of Tulsa College of Law in 2012. Read more.

    Bracewell announced that Jennifer Speck has joined the firm's tax department as a partner in the Houston office. Photo via LinkedIn

    Energy-focused law firm names new Houston partner

    new hire

    A law and government relations firm serving energy, infrastructure, finance, and technology industries has named a new Houston partner.

    Bracewell announced that Jennifer Speck has joined the firm's tax department as a partner in the Houston office. Speck will advise clients on energy transition tax incentives.

    Some of her experiences include onshore and offshore wind, solar, carbon capture, clean hydrogen and clean fuel projects. She recently served as senior manager of tax and regulatory compliance at Navigator CO2 Ventures LLC. She graduated in 2010 with a B.F.A. in mental health psychology from Northeastern State University, and received her J.D., with honors, from The University of Tulsa College of Law in 2012.

    "Jenny has significant experience in critical tax credits for carbon capture and other energy transition projects," Elizabeth L. McGinley, chair of Bracewell's tax department, says in a news release. "Her knowledge of these, and other, tax incentives strengthens our ability to help clients take full advantage of the tax benefits available under the Inflation Reduction Act."

    Nationally recognized, Bracewell's tax department is known for its experience involving tax matters related to the energy industry. Bracewell has also led the development of one of the country's largest multidisciplinary energy transition legal teams.

    Ad Placement 300x100
    Ad Placement 300x600

    CultureMap Emails are Awesome

    Property Showcase

    Houston climatech incubator names new CFO

    onboarding

    Greentown Labs, a climatech incubator with locations in Houston and Somerville, Massachusetts, has hired Naheed Malik as its chief financial officer. In her new role, she oversees finance, accounting and human resources.

    Malik previously worked at American Tower Corp., an owner of wireless communication towers. During her 12-year tenure there, she was vice president of financial planning and analysis, and vice president of corporate finance.

    Before American Tower, Malik led financial planning and analysis at Wolters Kluwer Health, and was a management consultant at Kearney and an audit CPA at EY.

    Kevin Dutt, Greentown’s interim CEO, says in a news release that Malik’s “deep expertise will be a boon for Greentown as we seek to serve even more climatech startups in our home states of Massachusetts and Texas, and beyond.”

    “I am delighted to join Greentown at such an exciting time in its organizational growth,” Malik says. “As a nonprofit that’s deeply dedicated to its mission of supporting climatech innovation, Greentown is poised to build on its impressive track record and expand its impact in the years to come.”

    Greentown bills itself as North America’s largest incubator for climatech startups. Today, it’s home to more than 200 startups. Since its founding in 2011, Greentown has nurtured more than 575 startups that have raised over $8.2 billion in funding.

    Last year, Greentown’s CEO and president Kevin Knobloch announced that he would be stepping down in July 2024, after less than a year in the role. The incubator. About a month before the announcement, Knobloch reported that Greentown would reduce its staff by 30 percent, eliminating roles in Boston and Houston. He noted changes in leadership, growth of the team and adjustments following the pandemic.

    Greentown plans to announce its new permanent CEO by the end of the month.

    Being prepared: Has the Texas grid been adequately winterized?

    Winter in Texas

    Houstonians may feel anxious as the city and state brace for additional freezing temperatures this winter. Every year since 2021’s Winter Storm Uri, Texans wonder whether the grid will keep them safe in the face of another winter weather event. The record-breaking cold temperatures of Uri exposed a crucial vulnerability in the state’s power and water infrastructure.

    According to ERCOT’s 6-day supply and demand forecast from January 3, 2025, it expected plenty of generation capacity to meet the needs of Texans during the most recent period of colder weather. So why did the grid fail so spectacularly in 2021?

    1. Demand for electricity surged as millions of people tried to heat their homes.
    2. ERCOT was simply not prepared despite previous winter storms of similar intensity to offer lessons in similarities.
    3. The state was highly dependent on un-winterized natural gas power plants for electricity.
    4. The Texas grid is isolated from other states.
    5. Failures of communication and coordination between ERCOT, state officials, utility companies, gas suppliers, electricity providers, and power plants contributed to the devastating outages.

    The domino effect resulted in power outages for millions of Texans, the deaths of hundreds of Texans, billions of dollars in damages, with some households going nearly a week without heat, power, and water. This catastrophe highlighted the need for swift and sweeping upgrades and protections against future extreme weather events.

    Texas State Legislature Responds

    Texas lawmakers proactively introduced and passed legislation aimed at upgrading the state’s power infrastructure and preventing repeated failures within weeks of the storm. Senate Bill 3 (SB3) measures included:

    • Requirements to weatherize gas supply chain and pipeline facilities that sell electric energy within ERCOT.
    • The ability to impose penalties of up to $1 million for violation of these requirements.
    • Requirement for ERCOT to procure new power sources to ensure grid reliability during extreme heat and extreme cold.
    • Designation of specific natural gas facilities that are critical for power delivery during energy emergencies.
    • Development of an alert system that is to be activated when supply may not be able to meet demand.
    • Requirement for the Public Utility Commission of Texas, or PUCT, to establish an emergency wholesale electricity pricing program.

    Texas Weatherization by Natural Gas Plants

    In a Railroad Commission of Texas document published May 2024 and geared to gas supply chain and pipeline facilities, dozens of solutions were outlined with weatherization best practices and approaches in an effort to prevent another climate-affected crisis from severe winter weather.

    Some solutions included:

    • Installation of insulation on critical components of a facility.
    • Construction of permanent or temporary windbreaks, housing, or barriers around critical equipment to reduce the impact of windchill.
    • Guidelines for the removal of ice and snow from critical equipment.
    • Instructions for the use of temporary heat systems on localized freezing problems like heating blankets, catalytic heaters, or fuel line heaters.

    According to Daniel Cohan, professor of environmental engineering at Rice University, power plants across Texas have installed hundreds of millions of dollars worth of weatherization upgrades to their facilities. In ERCOT’s January 2022 winterization report, it stated that 321 out of 324 electricity generation units and transmission facilities fully passed the new regulations.

    Is the Texas Grid Adequately Winterized?

    Utilities, power generators, ERCOT, and the PUCT have all made changes to their operations and facilities since 2021 to be better prepared for extreme winter weather. Are these changes enough? Has the Texas grid officially been winterized?

    This season, as winter weather tests Texans, residents may potentially experience localized outages. When tree branches cannot support the weight of the ice, they can snap and knock out power lines to neighborhoods across the state. In the instance of a downed power line, we must rely on regional utilities to act quickly to restore power.

    The specific legislation enacted by the Texas state government in response to the 2021 disaster addressed to the relevant parties ensures that they have done their part to winterize the Texas grid.

    ---

    Sam Luna is director at BKV Energy, where he oversees brand and go-to-market strategy, customer experience, marketing execution, and more.

    This article first appeared on our sister site, InnovationMap.com.

    Halliburton names 5 clean energy startups to latest incubator cohort

    clean team

    Halliburton Labs has named five companies to its latest cohort, including one from Texas.

    All of the companies are working to help accelerate the future of the energy industry in different ways. The incubator aims to advance the companies’ commercialization with support from Halliburton's network, facilities and financing opportunities.

    The five new members include:

    • 360 Energy, an Austin-based in-field computing company with technology that is able to capture flared or stranded gas and monetize it through modular data centers
    • Cella, a New York-based mineral storage company that provides end-to-end services, from resource assessment to proprietary injection technology, and monitoring techniques to provide geologic carbon storage solutions
    • Espiku, an engineering services company based in Bend, Oregon, that finds solutions that advance water and minerals recovery from brines and industrial-produced water streams
    • Mitico, based in Los Angeles, that offers technology services to capture carbon dioxide by using its patent-pending granulated metal carbonate sorption technology (GMC) that captures more than 95% of the CO2 emitted from post-combustion point sources
    • NuCube, a Pasadena, California-based company with a nuclear fission reactor under development

    “We welcome these innovative energy startups,” Dale Winger, managing director of Halliburton Labs, said in a news release. “We are eager to help these participant companies use their time and capital efficiently to progress new solutions that meet industry requirements for cost, reliability, and sustainability.”

    Halliburton Labs also announced that it will host the Finalists Pitch Day on March 26, 2025, in Denver for energy and decarbonization industry innovators, startups and investors ahead of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Industry Growth Forum. The pitch event will precede registration and the opening reception of the NREL forum. Find more information here.

    Adena Power, an Ohio-based clean energy startup, was the latest to join Halliburton Labs prior to the new cohort. The company used three patented materials to produce a sodium-based battery that delivers clean, safe and long-lasting energy storage.

    The incubator also named San Francisco-based venture capital investor Pulakesh Mukherjee, partner at Imperative Ventures, which specializes in hard tech decarbonization startups, to its advisory board last spring.

    Read more about the incubator's 2023 cohort here.

    View All Listings