In early March, Scott Drury spoke on a hydrogen panel at the 4th annual Partnership for Transatlantic Energy and Climate Cooperation, met U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, and connected with leaders in the public and private sectors about how to maximize the utility of current energy infrastructure while investing in new infrastructure to achieve decarbonized energy systems.
The Partnership for Transatlantic Energy and Climate Cooperation, organized by the Atlantic Council and held this year in Zagreb, Croatia, brings together energy leaders from around the world to chart the global course to clean energy. Speaking on the global hydrogen economy panel, Drury emphasized the benefits of clean hydrogen for multiple economic sectors and how collaboration among nations and major energy companies can accelerate the energy transition to achieve clean, reliable, and affordable energy to help address climate change.
Joining Drury on the hydrogen panel were U.S. Asst. Secretary of Energy Brad Crabtree, a leading government figure on carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration, and Argonne National Lab Director Paul K. Kearns. In addition to speaking on the panel and meeting Energy Secretary Granholm, Drury also met one-on-one with Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves to discuss how adding clean hydrogen to California’s energy system can serve as a model for the rest of the nation, delivering clean and reliable energy, good jobs, and promoting a just economic transition to clean energy.
“The Partnership for Transatlantic Energy and Climate Cooperation is a forum for speaking with the best and brightest minds on energy, and for discussing the most innovative energy technologies,” said Drury. “SoCalGas and California are leaders in mapping out the future of energy infrastructure, and it will be vital going forward to invest in our current infrastructure while finding new pathways for decarbonized energy sources to meet domestic and global demand.”
At the conclusion of the conference, Drury had this to say, “We at SoCalGas are very focused on California, and what was interesting to learn in meeting leaders at the conference is that SoCalGas is very much seen as a leader by other major actors in global energy, both in the private and public sector. People have their eyes on us, and it’s because of the innovative work happening at our great company.”
In coming years, the Department of Energy will fund a limited number of hydrogen hubs in the United States and, by building relationships with key decision-makers in the Energy Department, Drury is better positioning SoCalGas and California for federal funding for a hydrogen hub in Southern California.
