Meet the new chair of the ONS Conference Committee, Ed Daniels. Being the EVP for Strategy and Portfolio in Shell, he has some clear thoughts about how he will influence the conference programme for ONS 2022.
Who is Ed Daniels?
I’m British and an engineer by background and started in the very front end of our business. I’ve worked in many different parts of the world, and I do have a real passion for the energy transformation. I think it’s such an exciting time to be in the energy industry right at this moment.
Being in charge of Strategy and Portfolio; how does Shell manage its strategy and portfolio to fit the global ambitions of a low carbon society?
We’re seeing the biggest changes in the entire energy system that we’ve had for generations. One thing we all can agree on is that we don’t exactly know how the energy industry is going to unfold over the coming decades. We do know it’s going to be radical changes but we don’t know exactly how it’s going to happen. Shell use scenario thinking, for example thoughts around the politics, the geopolitics of energy, to see how it will potentially unfold. We analyze energy that powers progress around the world, but at the same time starts to address the challenges of the energy transition and the challenges of climate change to get us to our goal of decarbonizing the energy system.
The ONS Conference Committee shapes and creates the conference programme for the ONS main event. What discussions and ideas are on your bucket list in order to shape a world class energy conference programme at ONS 2022?
There are fundamental changes going to happen across the entire specter of the energy system, and I want this to be a point where we can debate across that entire system. Traditional oil and gas are going to form a part of that energy system for decades yet to come, so it needs to be addressed in our conversations. In addition to new forms of energy, being hydrogen, renewable power, biofuels, CCS or nature-based solutions. I feel very strongly about the fact that the energy system have to be a compact between governance, civil society and corporations. It’s not just an issue of energy supply, it’s what consumers and customers and governments around the world will demand of the energy system.
ONS has chosen TRUST as our main theme for our 2022 event. What’s your reflections on how trust acts as a part of the road to global decarbonization?
ONS is such an amazing platform that bring together parties for dialogue. It’s an arena where we respect one another views, respect that there are different pathways to keep the world powered with the energy that it needs to grow and develop, and at the same time address climate change, the energy transition and the net zero ambitions by 2050. For me trust is about the ability to have respectful dialogue despite differences. ONS bring together corporations, governments and people representing the civil service with different views. It’s only by bringing these bodies together in a place of respect, honesty and integrity in the debate that we can possibly hope to forge a collaborative path forward. It feels like an amazing privilege to chair the Conference Committee. My personal commitment is that I’m going to do my utmost to drive the conversation and the debate in the conference to help meet those goals of powering the world with the energy that it needs, and at the same time driving decarbonization and driving the climate change agenda to get the goals that we all aspire.