2nd IEL Energy Project Development Conference
Houston, Texas, USA
Registrar: +1.972.244.3403
IEL: +1.972.244.3421
E-Mail: iel@cailaw.org
Overview
This conference focuses on project development in the energy industry, bringing together in-house, government and law firm practitioners to offer insights, strategies and solutions to trends and challenges in bringing a project online. More information coming soon!
Conference Co-Chairs
Scott Greer
King & Spalding LLP
Houston, Texas
Lee Pardue
Golden Pass LNG
Houston, Texas
Registration Options
Early registration pricing is available through September25, 2025.
- $450 - Regular Registration Fee (Regular Price: $495.00)
- $395 - IEL Advisory Board Member (Regular Price: $440.00)
- $395 - IEL Supporting or Sustaining Member Employee (Regular Price: $440.00)
- $395 - IEL Young Energy Professional Member (Regular Price: $440.00)
- $395 - Government Employee (Regular Price: $440.00)
- $395 - In-House Counsel (Regular Price: $440.00)
- $75 - Full-time Law Professor (Regular Price: $75.00)
- $50 - Law Student (Regular Price: $50.00)
Schedule and Faculty
8:15 a.m. - Registration
8:50 – 9:00 a.m. - Welcome, Overview and Introductions
9:00 – 10:00 a.m. - From Seven County to Capitol Hill: Navigating Judicial Precedent, Legislative Change, and Executive Authority in Energy Law (60 minutes)
In the past several months, federal energy law has undergone sweeping changes across all three branches of government. This panel will explore the legal implications of the Seven County Infrastructure decision, the rescission of CEQ’s NEPA regulations, and recent litigation affecting energy projects. Panelists will discuss new departmental procedures, evolving agency obligations, and statutory developments under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), including changes to DOE loan authority, clean energy tax credit eligibility, and the shift in policy focus toward reliability and capacity expansion. Executive Orders such as Unleashing American Energy and Ending Market Distorting Subsidies for Unreliable, Foreign-Controlled Energy Sources will be analyzed for their legal and regulatory impact, including implementation strategies and litigation risk.
Moderator: Bill Cooper, Former GC at Department of Energy, Former GC at Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC, Houston, Texas
Panelists:
- Marcella Burke, Burke Law Group, Houston, Texas
- Mark W. Menezes, President and CEO, United States Energy Association, Washington, D.C.
- Additional Panelists Invited
10:00 – 11:00 a.m. - Building Resilience: Construction, Restructuring, and Cost Management in the Era of Megaprojects (60 minutes)
This dynamic panel will explore the critical challenges and opportunities in managing construction, restructuring, and cost strategies for large-scale and megaprojects. Join our distinguished panelists as they share their expertise on navigating complex projects, mitigating risks, and achieving successful outcomes in today’s evolving energy landscape. Edward Merrow, Founder and Executive Chairman of Independent Project Analysis, Inc., and the acclaimed author of Industrial Megaprojects and other influential works, will provide insights into the practices that drive success in the most challenging projects. Mark R. Robeck, Assistant General Counsel at Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC, will address the nuances of bankruptcy and restructuring in the construction arena. Christopher Isaac, Associate General Counsel at Sempra Energy, will share his expertise in leading negotiations and crafting contracts for some of the world’s most ambitious construction projects. This session is a must-attend for legal, construction, and project management professionals seeking practical strategies for overcoming the complexities of modern megaprojects.
Moderator: Terra Cothran, King & Spalding LLP, Houston, Texas
Panelists:
- Christopher Isaac, Associate General Counsel, Sempra Energy, San Diego, California
- Ed Merrow, Executive Chairman, Independent Project Analysis (IPA), Ashburn, Virginia
- Mark R. Robeck, General Counsel, Golden Pass LNG Terminal LLC, Houston, Texas
11:00 – 11:30 a.m. - BREAK
11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. - Tariffs (45 minutes)
- Speaker Invited
12:15 – 1:15 p.m. - NETWORKING LUNCH
1:15 – 2:15 p.m. - Power Supply Solutions for the Ever-Expanding Data Center/Hyperscaler Space (60 minutes)
The volume of incremental power generation required to serve new data center/hyperscaler centers across the United States is staggering. Given the reliability requirements associated with those types of power demand, only a few solutions are available in the short term to fill that need. The race for new behind-the-meter / front-of-the-meter power solutions has begun. In addition, other types of electric infrastructure are being proposed to help take advantage of existing generation that is not being fully utilized. Significant project development efforts (in a variety of areas—gas pipelines, gas-fired power generation, nuclear generation (small modular reactors) and long-haul power transmission lines) will all be needed to satisfy the overwhelming demands on the industry. This session will focus on the development opportunities that exist in this space and some of the key issues facing the developers of those projects.
Moderator: Stuart R. Zisman, King & Spalding LLP, Houston, Texas
Panelists:
- Marcus Augustine, Calpine, Houston, Texas
- Kristen Williams Golden, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, Grid United LLC, Houston, Texas
- Masjood Jafri, Solution Leader – Energy Transition, National Energy Transition Strategic Advisor, Arcadis, Houston, Texas
2:15 – 3:00 p.m. - LNG Project Development: Current and Future Prospects (45 minutes)
This panel will explore the current headwinds and tailwinds affecting LNG project development, including geopolitical and domestic factors in in light of rapid changes to the political, economic and regulatory environment. Discussion will include market drivers for the LNG industry, future prospects for LNG giving competing capital needs in the energy sector, increasing demands for natural gas, midstream development requirements and decarbonization goals, as well as changes to financing sources available to fund LNG project development.
Moderator: Inosi M. Nyatta, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP, New York, New York
Panelists:
- Chris Buckingham, Managing Director, Evercore, New York, New York
- Jeff Hammad, Chief Commercial Officer, Golden Pass Terminal LNG, Houston, Texas
- Julie Mayo, Senior Vice President & Chief Legal Officer, Sempra Infrastructure, Houston, Texas
3:00 – 3:15 p.m. - BREAK
3:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. - Opportunities and Developments in Marine Shipping and Energy(45 minutes)
The panel will focus on recent commercial, regulatory and other legal developments in the U.S. marine shipping and energy sectors offering perspectives from participants in the shipbuilding, transportation and fuels industries. In particular, the panel will address opportunities arising under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) and the Trump Administration’s efforts to stimulate investment and revitalization of the domestic shipping industry as well as developments and commercial ventures to stimulate the transition to LNG and green methanol as a transportation fuel. Panelists will also discuss the critical link and related constraints that marine shipping still has for export oriented projects from the U.S. and for domestically oriented ones between markets that do not have pipeline connections.
Moderator: Carlos A. Solé, III, Baker Botts L.L.P., Houston, Texas
Panelists:
- Jay Huffman,General Counsel, Seaside LNG, Houston, Texas
- Griff Lane, General Counsel, SunGas Renewables Inc., Houston, Texas
- Ryan Lynch, President, CEO, Hanwha Shipping, Houston, Texas
4:00 – 4:45 p.m. - Decommissioning in the Gulf of America (45 minutes)
Numerous first-time issues have arisen in the past 5 years as the industry has learned how to address its asset retirement obligations in the Gulf of Mexico. The panel will discuss their perspective on the past, present and future state of this critical part of the industry.
Moderator: Peter Hays, Paul Hastings LLP, Houston, Texas
Panelists:
- Allison Davis, Managing Counsel, Oxy, Houston, Texas
- Jennifer Welshons, Senior Counsel, Chevron, Houston, Texas
- Additional Panelist Invited
4:45 p.m. - ADJOURN
MCLE Credit
This course is pending approval for Minimum Continuing Legal Education credit by the State Bar of Texas Committee on MCLE in the amount of 6.0 credit hours, of which no credit hours will apply to ethics/professional responsibility credit.
IEL as registrar for the conference will directly apply for course accreditation in the following additional states: California, Colorado, Louisiana, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. Some of these states may not approve a program for credit hours before the program occurs. The program Approved credit hours will vary by jurisdiction and are subject to each jurisdiction’s approval and credit rounding rules.
Hotel Information
The Chifley Houston
2400 West Loop South
Houston, TX 77027
- Room rate is $169++/night for 1 King 2 Room Suite
Cutoff is September 24.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Lanyard Sponsor (Exclusive) - $4,000 - SOLD
- Name/logo on lanyards distributed at Conference
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company/firm logo on the Conference website, with link to company/firm website
- Company/firm logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- Recognition from the podium during the Conference
- 2 complimentary registrants at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
Conference Materials Sponsor (Exclusive) - $4,000 - SOLD
- Single page company/firm advertisement showing through back of packet containing Conference related material
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company/firm logo on the Conference website, with link to company/firm website
- Company/firm logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- Recognition from the podium during the Conference
- 2 complimentary registrants at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
Breakfast Sponsor (Exclusive) - $3,500 - SOLD
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company/firm logo on the Conference website, with link to company/firm website
- Company/firm logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- Recognition from the podium during the Conference
- Recognition via signage at breakfast
- 2 complimentary registrants at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
Morning Break Sponsor (Exclusive) - $3,500 - SOLD
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company/firm logo on the Conference website, with link to company/firm website
- Company/firm logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- Recognition via signage at break
- 2 complimentary registrants at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
Afternoon Break Sponsor (Exclusive) - $3,500 - SOLD
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company/firm logo on the Conference website, with link to company/firm website
- Company/firm logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- Recognition via signage at break
- 2 complimentary registrants at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
Luncheon Sponsor - $2,750 each
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company/firm logo on the Conference website, with link to company/firm website
- Company/firm logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- Recognition at the luncheon
- 1 complimentary registrant at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
Exhibitor (Non-law Firms only) - $2,750 each
- Recognition in all marketing material
- Company logo on the Conference website, with link to company website
- Company logo prominently displayed in the Conference program and Conference break slides
- 1 complimentary registrant at the Conference
- An opportunity to display company/firm materials at the Conference
For more information about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Lilly Hogarth, Sponsorship Director at lhogarth@cailaw.org or +1.972.244.3424.
Other Information
Press Policy
All IEL conferences are held under the Chatham House Rule. Participants, including journalists, are free to use any information received, but comments may not be attributed to any speaker identifi ed by name or affiliation.
Photo/Audio/Video Release
Registration for or attendance at this event acknowledges consent to be recorded or photographed. We reserve the right to use any photograph/video taken at our events, without the expressed written permission of those included within the photograph/video. We may use the photograph/video in publications or other media material produced, used or contracted including but not limited to: brochures, invitations, books, newspapers, magazines, television, websites, annual reports, newsletters, etc. To ensure the privacy of individuals, images will not be identified using full names or personal identifying information without written approval from the photographed subject
Visa Information
If you require a letter of invitation to obtain a visa for this conference, payment of the registration fee must first be made. If you apply and do not receive a visa, please send us a copy of the rejection letter from the consulate, and we will cancel your registration and issue a refund. Please email iel@cailaw.org for more details.
Nondiscriminatory Policy
The Center for American and International Law does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected status in educational activities, scholarship programs or admissions.
Privacy Policy
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