2023 ANNUAL COMMUNITY GUIDE
Houston’s established energy sector, in concert with growth throughout the city, is changing. industry in flux
60,000+ Employed in clean energy
Employed in energy 237,000+
2.6 million Barrels of crude oil produced per day
67 Tech energy companies
30+ Incubators, accelerators and coworking spaces
$327.6 million In venture capital to energy sector over the last ve years
800+ Venture-backed startups
SOURCE: GREATER HOUSTON PARTNERSHIP COMMUNITY IMPACT
the curve is seen with Houston’s oil industry. In GHP data released at the annual Economic Outlook on Dec. 8, the state recovered 8.7% more jobs lost in exploration and production and 33.3% more oil eld service jobs from January 2020 to October 2022 than the Greater Houston area. Despite this, Houston’s energy industry is still pro- gressing, according to some industry experts, including Krishnamoorti. Houston has one of the highest greenhouse gas emission rates per capita in the U.S. at 14.9 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per cap- ita per year, according to the Climate Action Plan. “There are multiple vectors that we need to move on in order to make this energy transition happen; there is no single silver bullet,” Krishnamoorti said. He did, however, mention methods—currently in practice in Houston—of eliminating the carbon footprint. One way is by using carbon capture, a method in which Houston has had “global leadership,” Krishna- moorti said. Another method is by looking toward cleaner energy altogether. The city’s partnership with retail electric provider NRG has lowered Houston’s e ective direct carbon emissions by 85% since 2005, per an August 2021 GHP posting by Maggie Martin, director of marketing and communi- cations at GHP. NRG has an interim
of Mercury Fund, an early-stage venture capital rm. “We have made more progress in the last ve to seven years, I think, than we have in the last 20 years,” Garrou said, attributing recent change to millennials and Generation Z. Garrou said he believes this pattern of progress, in addition to Houston’s varied population, sets the city up for future success. “We are seeing an in ux of Black and Latino founders move to Houston, not because they’re trying to raise capital, but because of the inclusive nature of the city,” he said. “I think that will continue to happen in 2023.” Houston companies received $2.02 billion in venture capital in 2021, a “near ve-fold” increase from $423 million in 2017, per the GHP’s 2022 Tech Report. These changes are re ected in mixed-use spaces, such as the Ion, which opened in May, and coworking spaces, such as Spaces and Life Time Work at GreenStreet in downtown. This cross-industry collaboration is also seen through the Texas Medical Center’s 37-acre Helix Park, a campus catering to academia, medicine, science and commerce that will be complete in fall 2023. Despite recent developments, innovation is nothing new to Houston, said Raymond Hodges, director of IT consulting company Accenture’s downtown Innovation Hub.
target of reducing carbon emissions by 50% by 2025, according to a December interview with Jeanne-Mey Sun, NRG’s vice president of sustainability, by Lou Ann Duvall, a marketing and communications director at the GHP. “WE HAVE MADE MORE PROGRESS IN THE LAST FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS, I THINK, THAN WE HAVE IN THE LAST 20 YEARS.”
“I think the culture of exploration and innovation has always been here,” he said. In summer 2021, the GHP and other local leaders published a plan to lead the nation toward a goal of zero carbon emissions. Energy companies involved in the transition include Chevron, Conoco Phillips, ExxonMobil, Shell, BP America and Schlumberger, among others, according to David Ruiz, GHP marketing and communications coordinator. “I would say, for the most part, companies know what technologies are out there. They know what to do,” he said. “The challenge is how to do it, right? So, we’re really focused on how we support them in identifying how these new technologies can be applied.” Krishnamoorti said he believes Houston will be at the forefront of change in energy in the future. “I think we’re starting to see some real signi cant innovations coming along that will help accelerate the global [energy] transition, but, more importantly, put Houston as [a] front-and-center leader in this space,” he said. “So that global leadership is something that I think you will see Houston develop and deliver in 2023.”
BLAIR GARROU, CHAIR OF THE HOUSTON INNOVATION COUNCIL AND MANAGING DIRECTOR OF MERCURY FUND
According to the GHP’s Houston Energy Transition Initiative report from June 2021, if Houston does not take action in response to the energy transition, the region could lose up to 650,000 jobs in energy and related elds by 2050. Simultaneously, if “decisive” action is taken, Houston could see a gain of 560,000 jobs. Ongoing, future innovation As one of the most diverse cities in the U.S., Houston is uniquely posi- tioned to cater toward founders of all backgrounds, said Blair Garrou, chair of the Houston Innovation Council, a part of the GHP, and managing director
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BELLAIRE MEYERLAND WEST UNIVERSITY EDITION • JANUARY 2023
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