We are in the process of finalizing the content of the Foundation’s Midyear meeting. The meeting will be held at the Hyatt Regency Lost Pines outside of Austin, TX on April 26-27. Please mark this on your calendars and encourage appropriate people within your companies to attend this meeting.
Dr. Martin Regalia, the Chief Economist of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce will deliver the keynote address on the economic outlook for U.S. businesses in the near future. Another featured speaker, Dr. Benjamin Schlesinger — a leading energy industry consultant — will address significant issues facing the natural gas industry within the next 3 to 5 years. General Session panels will address greenhouse gas issues and their potential impacts on the natural gas industry, the current status of PHMSA initiatives, and progress made on pipeline transportation and storage issues that were identified at our 2006 meetings. We also will have a presentation on the 811 initiative.
The Midyear meeting will begin the process of vetting potential topics for the 2008 study cycle. We have begun contacting many members of the Foundation membership to solicit concepts for studies that warrant attention in 2008. We encourage you to think about issues that are on the horizon that may be informed by a Foundation study. Please communicate your thoughts, or those in your company who participate on INGAA committees, to Terry Boss, Lisa Beal, or Mark Shaffer before the end of March.
Finally, I encourage INGAA Board members to attend a portion, if not all, of the Foundation’s Midyear meeting. The Foundation members value the opportunity to interact with INGAA company leaders and our meetings provide strong substantive content on both short and long-term issues facing the natural gas industry.
