July 8-12 & 15-19
2024
Dalton J. Woods Auditorium
Energy, Coast & Environment Bldg
93 S. Quad Drive
Louisiana State University
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
Course Presenters
Coordinators
Chris McLindon
Director of Energy Education & Outreach
LSU Center for Energy Studies
As Director of Energy Education and Outreach at the Center, Chris oversees the development and implementation of educational programs aimed at preparing the next generation of energy leaders. He also engages with key stakeholders, including policymakers, industry professionals and the general public to promote awareness and understanding of key energy issues.
Chris worked for four decades as a geologist in the upstream oil and gas industry, and more recently as a geologist in the carbon capture and storage industry. The latter experience included the exploration and development of new sites for CO2 sequestration in Louisiana and Texas, the development of geological models for CO2 injection simulation, and geological site characterization for Class VI permit applications for CCS projects in Louisiana and Texas.
D. Andrew Owens
Research Fellow
LSU Center for Energy Studies
Andrew retired from Entergy at the end of 2023 as Director, Regulatory Research & Strategy, after having spent 25+ years in several roles, including a stint in the deregulated retail electricity market in Texas. Most of his Entergy career was focused on regulatory and policy matters. From 2015-2023, he led a team responsible for providing support and strategy to Entergy’s five public utilities on various regulatory matters and policy issues related to ratemaking and emerging technologies, including smart grid, energy efficiency and demand response, distributed energy resources, renewables, electric vehicles and charging infrastructure, and energy storage. From 1991 to 1996, he worked in environmental consulting and focused on federal and state air pollution issues, policies, modeling simulations, and permitting. He earned a B.S. in chemical engineering with distinction from Iowa State in 1991 and received an M.S. in management (MBA) from Georgia Tech in 1998. He is a registered P.E. in Georgia and a licensed CPA in Louisiana.
LSU Faculty
Dr. Greg Upton
Executive Director & Associate Professor - Research
LSU Center for Energy Studies
Dr. Greg Upton's research interests are related to the analysis of economic, environmental and public policy issues in the energy industry. During his tenure at LSU, he has addressed topical energy issues of significance to Louisiana, including state mineral taxes, solar tax credits, and net metering policies, the impact of the oil price collapse on Louisiana’s budgetary challenges, and implications of the crude oil export ban’s lifting on the Louisiana economy, among others. He has presented research to more than 150 industry, governmental, and academic audiences, and has been quoted or cited approximately 150 times in local and national media, including the Wall Street Journal and NPR’s Marketplace. Dr. Upton holds a Ph.D. in Economics from LSU, where he also received both an M.S. in economics and a B.S. in economics with a concentration in empirical analysis.
Dr. Mark Kaiser
Professor - Research
LSU Center for Energy Studies
Mark Kaiser is a Professor at the Center for Energy Studies at LSU and has research interest in the oil, gas and refining sectors. A graduate of Purdue University in 1991, he has worked at the Center since 2001.
Dr. Anurag Mandalika
Assistant Professor - Research
Dr. Mandalika is Assistant Professor - Research at the Center for Energy Studies. His research interests include biomass and bioenergy, biofuels, waste reduction and valorization, emissions measurement, carbon dioxide removal, ethics, and environmental justice. He has studied the production of the platform chemicals furfural and furfuryl alcohol in high yield from a variety of biomass sources using novel, green chemistry principles, evaluated the application of membranes for separations in biomass processing and conversion, and studied the removal of arsenic from water using adsorbents prepared from waste biomass sources. He holds a B.S. in biosystems engineering from Clemson with a minor in environmental engineering, and M.S. and Ph.D. in biological systems engineering with a minor in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin - Madison.
Dr. Kerry Dooley
Professor
Cain Department of Chemical Engineering
Kerry M. Dooley is the BASF Professor in the Cain Department of Chemical Engineering, Louisiana State University, and a Registered Professional Engineer, Louisiana. He is the author of 10 edited books, one book chapter, 107 refereed publications, 41 refereed proceedings, and four patents in the broad areas of heterogeneous catalysis and reactor design/operation, and has held ~$5.0 M in funded research over the last five years. He has consulted for 14 different companies and performed contract research for 13.
Dr. Anthony Engler
Assistant Professor
Anthony Engler is an assistant professor in the LSU Cain Department of Chemical Engineering. His research interests include polymer material science and engineering, sustainability, and energy. His research projects have included chemically recyclable plastics, electrolyte membranes, electrochemical processes, and nanofabrication processes. He earned his Ph.D. from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2020, and a B.S. from the University of Texas, 2015.
Dr. John Flake
Professor
John Flake is a professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Associate Vice President of Natural and Built Environments for the LSU Office of Research & Economic Development. His research focus is on energy storage, electrochemical processes and materials, including electrocatalysts for CO2 reduction. Before and during his time at LSU, Flake has worked with industry, including for IBM and Motorola, where he developed processes to make computer chips for laptops and mobile phones. Dr. Flake received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Louisiana Tech University and his Ph.D. from Georgia Institute of Technology.
Dr. Margaret Reams
Professor
As a professor of Environmental Sciences, Dr. Reams studies policy issues related to environmental planning and policy, including community perception and response to environmental and ecological phenomena in Louisiana. With support from NIEHS, NSF, USDA and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, she and Dr. Nina Lam developed an empirical social-ecological resilience index to better predict the ability of communities to survive various environmental disturbances. The application of the resilience index to communities within Louisiana’s Industrial Corridor allows for spatial and temporal comparisons among communities, and helps researchers identify key factors that may explain variation in both the long-term impacts of cumulative environmental exposures and the reactions of stakeholders. Dr. Reams earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from the University of Georgia, and a B.A. in history and psychology from Huntingdon College.
Keith Hall
Director, LSU Energy Law Center
Keith B. Hall is the Nesser Family Chair in Energy Law at Louisiana State University, where he serves as Director of the Mineral Law Institute and as Director of the John P. Laborde Energy Law Center. He teaches oil and gas law courses, other energy law courses, and property law. Professor Hall is the co-author of three books on oil and gas law and an editor of “The Regulation of Decommissioning, Abandonment and Reuse Initiatives in the Oil and Gas Industry,” a book on decommissioning regulations around the world. Before joining the LSU faculty in 2012, Professor Hall practiced law in New Orleans for 16 years, and before that he worked for eight years as a chemical engineer.
Dr. Dandina Rao
Professor
Dr. Dandina Rao is a professor in the LSU Craft & Hawkins Department of Petroleum Engineering. His research interests include reservoir engineering and enhanced oil recovery. He earned his Ph.D. in chemical and petroleum engineering at the University of Calgary. He has an M.S. in chemical engineering from the University of Saskatchewan and a B. Tech. degree in chemical engineering from Osmania University, India.
Dr. Kenneth Matthews
Professor
Dr. Matthews is a professor of medical physics in the LSU Department of Physics & Astronomy. He provides medical imaging expertise, teaching, and research to the LSU Medical Physics & Health Physics Program. While specializing in medical physics, his research interests also include the application of medical imaging techniques to basic research in other fields (e.g., biology, veterinary science, engineering, etc). Related interests include radiation protection, facility radiation shielding design, and radiobiology. Dr. Matthews received a B.A. degree (majoring in chemistry and physics) from Austin College and a Ph.D. in medical physics from The University of Chicago. He received his clinical certification in medical nuclear physics from the American Board of Radiology in June 2001.
Government Agency & Non-Profit
Dr. James Kendall
Regional Director
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Dr. James (Jim) Kendall is the Regional Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Gulf of Mexico Regional Office. Before moving back to Louisiana, Jim served 11 years as the BOEM Alaska Regional Director. Jim joined the Gulf Office’s Studies program in 1989 before moving to headquarters, advocating throughout his career in favor of knowledge-informed decision-making, including the use of science, indigenous knowledge, and ocean exploration. He earned a B.S. in biology from Old Dominion University; a Ph.D. in oceanography from Texas A&M University; and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in marine biology with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He also graduated from the Senior Executive Fellows Program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, earning their Executive Certificate in Public Leadership.
Blake Canfield
Executive Counsel
Louisiana Department of Energy & Natural Resources
J. Blake Canfield is Executive Counsel for the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources. In this role Blake manages DENR’s Legal Division and is responsible for certain legislative matters involving DENR. He also advises DENR’s Secretary and staff on the department’s administrative and operational functions, as well as matters concerning DENR’s regulation of Louisiana’s natural resources. Before assuming his current role in 2013, Blake was Senior Attorney for the Louisiana Office of Conservation, where he represented the agency in litigation and administrative matters and provided legal counsel to the Commissioner of Conservation. Blake is a graduate of LSU’s Hebert Law Center and a member of the Louisiana Mineral Law Institute’s Advisory Council.
Roby Fulkerson
Petroleum Scientist Manager
Louisiana Department of Energy & Natural Resources
Roby Fulkerson is the Executive Director for the Oilfield Site Restoration (OSR) Program in the Louisiana Office of Conservation (OOC). He earned a B.S. in Petroleum Engineering at LSU and had experience as a wellsite supervisor, drilling engineer, and interventions engineer with several operators prior to joining the OOC.
Steven Giambrone
Director, Pipeline Division
Louisiana Department of Energy & Natural Resources
Steven Giambrone is Pipeline Division Director with the La. Department of Energy & Natural Resources. He is a petroleum engineer with six years of experience in the Office of Conservation, Environmental Inspection & Enforcement and Underwater Obstruction Section and eight years of experience in the Office of Conservation, Pipeline Division. His responsibilities have included issuance of compliance orders for violation of regulations governing oil and gas facilities, review oilfield pit files for compliance, processing applications for administrative approval of oil/gas unit terminations, processing of site clearance applications to ensure the states water bottoms are cleared of debris, implementation of the underwater obstruction program to locate and remove debris from the states water bottoms, and more.
Stephen Lee
Director, Petroleum Scientist Administrator Division
Louisiana Department of Energy & Natural Resources
Stephen H. (Steve) Lee is Director of the Injection and Mining Division (IMD) at the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources where he oversees three federal primacy programs: the Underground Injection Control Program; the Surface Mining Program; and the Abandoned Mine Lands Program. After 15 years of industry experience in subsurface and environmental geology, he joined the IMD in 1997 as a staff geologist. Steve left the IMD in 2008 for a private practice in property, mineral, and regulatory law before returning in 2013 as Director. He is a licensed professional geoscientist and attorney with a JD from the Southern University Law Center, an MBA in Finance from Louisiana Tech University and a B.S. in Geology from Louisiana Tech University.
Corey Shircliff
Assistant Director La. Injection & Mining Division
Louisiana Department of Energy & Natural Resources
Corey Shircliff, PG, currently serves as the Assistant Director of Injection and Mining at the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources. Prior to working in the IMD, Corey worked as a staff geologist in the Louisiana Office of Mineral Resources and at Marathon Oil in Houston. Corey holds a Bachelor of Science from Beloit College, a Master's in Geology from Louisiana State University, and a Master's in Legal Studies with a concentration in Oil, Gas, and Energy Law.
Andrew Young
Assistant Secretary
Louisiana Department of Energy & Natural Resources
Andrew Young is Assistant Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Energy and Natural Resources. There, he leads the Department’s Office of Mineral Resources and serves as Secretary of the State Mineral and Energy Board, the members of which collectively act as fiduciaries and administrators of the state’s minerals. Before his current role, Andrew worked as an attorney for Kean Miller LLP. After earning his undergraduate degree from LSU, he continued his studies at the university’s Hebert Law Center, where he graduated as a member of the prestigious Order of the Coif and served as senior editor of the Louisiana Law Review.
Britt Bowker
Director of Business Development
Louisiana Future Energy
Britt Bowker is the Director of Business Development for Louisiana Future Energy, where she spearheads an innovative “all of the above” energy strategy for South Louisiana Economic Development. Britt collaborates with various stakeholders to support the implementation of renewable energy projects; her efforts have helped Louisiana secure ~$50 billion in energy-sector investments and ~$1.5 billion in federal funding. She has over 15 years of experience in business development and recruitment, having held executive-level positions developing sales programs, enhancing talent acquisition processes, and driving growth for major accounts. A Rhodes College graduate and Baton Rouge native, Britt leverages her expertise to attract new businesses to Louisiana, facilitate existing ventures’ expansion into diverse energy sectors, and encourage long-term investment in the state.
Jenny Netherton
Louisiana Program Manager
Southeastern Wind Coalition
Jenny joined the Southeastern Wind Coalition in July 2022. She graduated from Tulane University Law School with a Certificate in Environmental Law in 2013. Jenny, originally from Shreveport, received a B.A. in English from Centenary College of Louisiana. Prior to joining SEWC, Jenny practiced environmental law focused on public water contamination. As Louisiana Program Manager, Jenny spearheads the SEWC’s role in Louisiana. Jenny’s work includes engaging and educating stakeholders, tracking legislation and policy initiatives, and convening with other NGOs to advance the wind industry in the state.
Dr. Brian Prest
Fellow
Resources for the Future
Dr. Brian Prest is an economist and fellow at Resources for the Future specializing in the economics of climate change, energy economics, and oil and gas supply. Dr. Prest uses economic theory and econometrics to improve energy and environmental policies by assessing their societal impacts, and his recent work includes updating estimates of the social cost of carbon and modeling policies around oil and gas supply. His research has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as Nature and the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, as well as in popular media like the Washington Post and Barron’s. Dr. Prest holds a PhD from Duke University and has held previous positions at the Congressional Budget Office and NERA Economic Consulting.
Industry Representatives
Shawn Holzhauser
BPX Energy
Shawn Holzhauser is Haynesville Business Unit Vice President for BPX. His responsibilities include the safe and efficient development of 1.7M net acres in the Haynesville Business Unit and management of a $250M capital budget, leading a team of ~75 technical and field professionals, including geologists, reservoir engineers, land, drilling & completion engineers, and facilities. Past roles include midcontinent and LAHA operations vice president for BP and completion engineering team lead for Shell. He has a B.S. in chemical engineering from LSU.
Matt Barr
Vice President, State & Local Government and Community Affairs
Cheniere Energy Inc.
Matt Barr is Vice President of State Government & Community Affairs at Cheniere Energy, where he leads the company’s government relations, stakeholder engagement, and social performance at the state and local levels. He has more than 15 years’ experience in public policy, government affairs, community impacts, and social performance. Matt is active on committees of various energy and business trade associations, including membership on the executive committee at the Texas Association of Manufacturers. Additionally, he is involved in organizations dedicated to advancing environmental and social performance across the energy industry, such as Ipieca and the National Petroleum Council’s study on greenhouse gas reductions. Before joining Cheniere nine years ago, Matt was senior director at a Houston-based public affairs firm.
Scott McDonald
CEO, President
Crescent Drilling & Production Inc.
Scott McDonald began his oil field career in 1980 with Baker Hughes, where he spent 27 years dedicated to supporting and growing Baker’s customer base. During his tenure with Baker, he spent numerous years in-house with Shell Offshore, where he drilled wells with autonomous responsibility for all bit selection while collaborating on BHA design, well design, drilling fluid, and interaction with formation. Scott joined Crescent Drilling & Production, Inc. in 2007, where for the last 17 years he has directed and managed a conglomerate of Crescent companies, along with its Project Management team (last 10 years), including 136 offshore and inland projects and 48 land wells. In February 2011, Scott became President and in 2015, he became both President & CEO of Crescent Drilling & Production, Inc.
Nathan McBride
Government Affairs Manager
Colonial Pipeline Company
Nathan McBride is the Government Affairs Manager at Colonial Pipeline Company, a position he comes to after more than five years with the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association. There, he spent time as both the Association’s Regulatory Affairs Manager and its Manager of Environmental Affairs. Through his various roles, Nathan has become deeply embedded in conversations around carbon policy in Louisiana, serving on the Oilfield Site Restoration Commission and the Commission for Louisiana’s Energy, Environment and Restoration, among other state Boards and Commissions. Nathan earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Mississippi State University and worked as an engineer for ExxonMobil following his graduation.
Jeremy Jenkins
Director of Business Development
Dow Chemical Company
Jeremy Jenkins is Director of Business Development at Dow Chemical Company. He has more than 15 years of experience with the company, having started his career as an engineer before moving into management in 2015. Jeremy earned both his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and his MBA from LSU.
Laura Beauchamp
Entergy Louisiana
As the Director of Resource Planning and Market Operations for Entergy Louisiana, Laura is responsible for managing the company's planning of generation, transmission, and wholesale power activities. Entergy Louisiana’s fundamental goal for resource planning is to deliver a sustainable portfolio that is centered on customer outcomes and balances reliability, affordability, and environmental stewardship. Laura’s team focuses not only on meeting the sustainability goals of the company, but more importantly on its customers. Laura has spent 24 years with Entergy, also holding positions in finance, regulatory, and innovation. She received both her Bachelor of Science Management in finance and Master of Business Administration from Tulane University’s A. B. Freeman School of Business. She currently serves as an Advisory Board Member to the Tulane Energy Institute and is an adjunct lecturer. Laura is also a member of Louisiana’s Climate Taskforce.
Samantha Hill
Entergy Services
Manager, Regulatory Rate Strategy
Samantha joined Entergy in 2014 and currently serves as Manager, Regulatory Rate Strategy. She is responsible for providing support and strategy to Entergy’s five public utilities on various regulatory matters and policy issues related to ratemaking and emerging technologies like energy efficiency, distributed energy resources, alternative fuel vehicles, and energy storage. Prior to Entergy, Samantha worked in public accounting as an external auditor with Deloitte & Touche LLP. She received her Bachelor of Professional Accountancy and her Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Finance from Tulane University. She is a Certified Public Accountant.
Lisa Perry
Director, Utility Partnerships
Walmart
Lisa V. Perry is a Director, Utility Partnerships - Regulatory for Walmart, Inc. As part of the utilities team, Lisa is actively involved in helping Walmart meet its sustainability goals by working directly with utilities across the United States on electric vehicle charging initiatives, demand response opportunities, renewable energy programs, energy efficiency, vehicle electrification plans, community solar, and resiliency, and by participating in state regulatory utility proceedings. To date, Lisa has participated in over 100 regulatory utility proceedings across 23 states. Lisa received from the University of Florida her law degree in 1999 and a L.L.M. in Taxation in 2000. She also completed a B.A. in Criminology and a B.A. in Psychology at the University of South Florida.
Misty Rowe-Davis
CCUS Global Account Management, Low Carbon Solutions
Halliburton Corporation
Misty Rowe-Davis, Ph.D., is the Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) Global Account Manager for Halliburton, responsible for managing Halliburton’s global strategy, existing technologies, customer relationships, and service delivery across the CCUS sector. Previously, she served as a Global Cementing Product Manager. Rowe-Davis joined Halliburton in 2011 as a Sr. Scientist. In this role, she led research and development for various cementing chemistry and engineering technologies. She started her Ph.D. in Polymer Science & Engineering at the University of Southern Mississippi before transferring and finishing in Applied Chemistry from the Colorado School of Mines. She completed a post-doctorate with University of Colorado.
Matheus Chagas
Director of Renewables
Grand Isle Shipyard Inc.
Erica Zimmerer
Lakuna Consulting
Erica Zimmerer is an experienced utility industry profession with over 20 years of experience in grid modernization and power delivery. She recently joined Lakuna Consulting as Partner, Utility Technology & Transformation in April of 2024. Prior to joining Lakuna Consulting, Zimmerer held the position of Vice President of Power Delivery Portfolio & Project Development at Entergy Corporation. In that role, she led the strategy and project development for Entergy’s transmission, distribution, and grid technology portfolio. She also played a key role in several grid modernization initiatives, including Entergy’s deployment of enterprise asset and work management systems. Zimmerer is a graduate of LSU with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an MBA.
David Schneider
Reservoir Engineer
LLOG Exploration Company
David Schneider is a Reservoir Engineer at LLOG Exploration and is responsible for
multiple subsea tieback projects in the Deepwater Gulf of Mexico. Prior to joining
LLOG in 2018, he held multiple technical and managerial positions at Stone Energy
Corporation and Eni Petroleum. David graduated with a BS in Mechanical Engineering
from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (2007), and an MBA in Finance from Tulane
University (2017).
Terry Benton
NextEra Renewable Energy Training
Terry Benton is a manager/supervisor of 41 years with a strong engineering background.
He has directed all phases of electrical power generation; operating, maintenance,
and training. He has managed accredited training programs regulated by the federal
government and has developed and implemented all phases of initial and continuing
training, including train the trainer. Terry leads training exercises that engage
participants with the NextEra Energy commissioned Renewable Energy Trainer.
William "Rusty" Burroughs
President-CEO
Nuline Utility Services
Rusty is President/CEO of NuLine Utility Services. During a 34-year career at Entergy Corporation, he worked in field craft jobs (laborer, operator, welder, technician), management positions, and executive leadership roles, including VP Gas Business, VP Integrated Energy Management, and VP Business Services. Rusty has also led accounting functions, responsible for all $12 billion of Entergy’s revenue. After retirement, he started NuLine Utility Services, a pipeline construction company performing natural gas pipeline installation and replacement, electric & telecommunications systems installation and replacement, refinery, petrochem, and other large plant work. Rusty has Bachelor of Science in Finance from LSU and an MBA from Tulane University.
Toby Roesler
Roesler Exploration, LLC
Jeff Cantin
Solar Alternatives
Jeff Cantin is founder and President of Solar Alternatives, a design/build firm focused on clean energy development. Jeff and his firm are leaders in microgrid technology, electric vehicle infrastructure and solar energy systems for business, government and residential clients, with over 2000 regional projects completed by his firm. Jeff is also co-founder of the regional solar trade association, and has testified for the past 12 years at state commissions and local councils on behalf of clean energy. He holds a degree in electrical engineering from Rice University, as well as PVIP Certification from the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners.
Nuria Holmes
SWCA Environmental Consultants
David Ray Williamson
Senior Geologist
Williamson & Associates, LLC
Mr. Williamson is a Registered/Licensed Professional Geologist with years of extensive experience in geological assessments, environmental investigations and project management. He conducts geological assessments and mineral exploration; wetland determinations and delineations; U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Section 404 and 10 permitting; Phase I Environmental Site Assessments; Phase II Site Assessments; groundwater investigations; and management of remediation; environmental permitting and regulatory compliance projects. He is responsible for business development and manages Williamson & Associates’ office in Shreveport. He has served as a Board Member of the Louisiana Board of Professional Geoscientists since 2018. He is a military veteran and served as a 2nd Lieutenant A Team Commander in the U.S. Army 20th Special Forces Group.