#United4EU

Meet Inés Melchor

Biography
Inés Melchor is currently Head of Guarantees of Origin for renewable gases at Enagás GTS. She is a mathematician by training and, throughout her professional career, has held various positions in the energy sector.

She holds a master in Energy and Electricity Markets by Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, a Big Data and Business Intelligence Program at Deusto Business School and she’s also a graduate of the IESE Business School’s Executive Development Programme (PDD).

Her work at Enagás GTS has always been linked to guaranteeing security of supply and supporting the decarbonisation of the Gas System, whether by forecasting gas demand using statistical models, national and European planning of gas networks and, these days, leading the team responsible for the implementation of the Guarantees of Origin System for renewable gases, which will certify the renewable origin of gases. Enagás GTS is the entity designated to temporarily manage this new system of guarantees.

Inés has participated in different ENTSOG groups. She also worked actively in Europe, collaborating in the development of gas interconnections and coordinating the IT developments carried out in the Technical System Manager, promoting its digitalisation.

What does “#United4EU” evoke for you?
For me #United4EU is about collaboration, creativity and agility.

We are going through a historic moment -the energy transition- which is transforming the world and Europe in particular. In a sector as strategic as the energy sector, now more than ever it is essential to have common objectives and cooperation between countries to achieve the targets of a common energy policy for 2030 and 2050.

In this new energy context, I believe we need to be more agile and look for new working models, aimed at maximising our value-added. It is essential to work in collaborative, inclusive and diverse settings in which different visions, experiences and ideas can be shared, multiplying the potential of the teams, fostering consensual, creative and innovative solutions. In my view, cooperation is the key and the real driver for the development of Europe’s decarbonised energy future, guaranteeing security of supply in a sustainable way.

Do you feel you contribute with your work to the energy transition? If yes, how?
Throughout my professional career I have been, in one way or another, providing solutions to challenges in the energy sector. Right now, our biggest challenge is the energy transition and the promotion of renewable gases, something I do every day as the leader of the team that manages the new Guarantees of Origin system for renewable gases, which will make it possible to certify the origin of renewable gas. These guarantees of origin will give us information on where, when and how the renewable gas is generated, as well as the renewable energy source used.

This is unprecedented! This certification is the first milestone towards the decarbonisation of the Spanish Gas System.

Do you think that the energy transition is accelerating the opportunities to have a greater diversity in the workforce? If so, how?
Yes, I really believe that the energy transition is exponentially multiplying diversity in the energy sector. This is a constantly evolving market, where traditional green energies have been joined in recent years by others such as renewable gases (biogas, biomethane and renewable hydrogen), which offer a sustainable and key solution to address the decarbonisation of the sector.

It is precisely this changing context that I believe has led to an increase in the diversity of teams, leading to more agile, robust and efficient responses. A diverse team is a source of constant learning, if the challenge faced is of great magnitude, having diversity, in its broadest sense, is fundamental and the key to success.

What initiatives is your company driving to create a diverse and inclusive workplace?
Enagás is committed to diversity in its workforce as a way of “creating value” and having a competitive advantage, to the extent that the diverse work teams are more agile and efficient and provide an innovative perspective necessary to face the current challenges.

As part of its commitment to equal opportunities and non-discrimination, Enagás has defined a Diversity and Inclusion Policy around gender, disability, generations, culture, thought and LGTBIQ+ diversity.

Enagás carries out actions in each of the 6 axes of its strategy with the idea that all the people who make up the organization must be responsible for building and supporting an inclusive culture.

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Meet Ákos Kriston

How does a day look in times of energy crisis?

How fast we can respond to this fast-paced environment: that’s this century/s greatest challenge. It concerns all of us, it unifies us: despite sectors, countries, generations and genders.

As a critical infrastructure operator, our position is essential in securing the country’s gas supply. Therefore, we must initiate measures in a record short time. If we zoom in on our industry, challenges are mostly related to volatile gas prices, inflation, and supply chain disruptions. MFGT is aware of those points, and we closely monitor them and adapt our work accordingly to remain a well-functioning organisation.

In parallel, we are committed to achieving decarbonisation goals, mainly through energy efficiency investments. Alongside leading daily operations, our company strives to maintain its carbon-neutral operations.

It’s good to see that people are motivated by this important mission and I feel proud of driving this determined crew throughout this journey towards climate neutrality.

Why the gas infrastructure is a sector of the future?

This is a fascinating, challenging, ever-changing industry with various players, from the transmission system, LNG terminals and storage operators. The future can only happen with a stable professional and technological ground established in the present. Therefore, all current infrastructure operators are key in the transition period as well.

Storage is the essential ingredient in the equation since the energy transition can only happen if we solve the energy storage problem, besides enabling the security of supply. The storage of molecules is one of the solutions and the best economically efficient in the short-medium term (2030) to preserve stability and enhance a diverse energy system. Integrating renewable gases is a non-negotiable condition for us, and we are passionate about discovering new technologies and solutions as part of the integration. It’s good to see more and more young workers joining us with innovative ideas and determination. Crossing generations and genders’ perspectives give a great dynamic and help the projects to move faster. It is also a good manner to ensure our solutions are sustainable and inclusive.

We find this approach as well in the leadership of the European Commission in terms of diversity both in the workforce and in the mix of molecules which will make the climate and energy objectives a reality. They have given the green light € 5.4 billion for hydrogen technology: this milestone paves the way for the ramp-up of the sector, which mainly shall be utilised by the companies currently involved in the technological developments. This clearly indicates that the European Union counts on the incumbent gas infrastructure operators to explore the potential and establish solid ground for the decarbonised ecosystem.

What is the role of market transparency in this crisis?

Any successful coalition builds its foundations on solidarity with respect to its differences. This is always fostered by transparency between its group members. It’s the same between EU Member States and gas market transparency, and we can see that with the latest regulations of the European Commission on solidarity. It has been more than 15 years that GIE has been active in market transparency activities, and we are determined to pursue our efforts. GIE’s AGSI and ALSI Transparency Platforms are real-time and go-to information sources offering daily reporting by storage and LNG terminal operators. We as well recently launched an interactive platform which enables users to customise the data visualisation according to their needs. Transparency is – and will remain – key to maintaining a resilient gas market in the short, mid and long term, and I am proud to be part of GIE’s Transparency initiatives, which hugely contribute to this initiative.

Meet Elena Blanco Lozano

Elena Blanco is Head of Sustainability & Environment at Enagás where she is responsible for the integration of sustainability, with a special focus on decarbonisation and environment, at strategic and management level, defining and implementing sustainability strategy and action plans, assessing ESG performance, and reporting to main sustainability indices and rankings in which Enagás has achieved worldwide leadership (DJSI, CDP Climate Change, FTSE4Good, among others).

She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Organisation Engineering by University of Navarra – TECNUN, a Management Development Program at IESE Business School, an Executive Management Program in Sustainability WBCSD LEAP at ESADE and Yale School of Management, an Advanced Corporate Responsibility Management Program at IE Business School, and an Advanced Digital Transformation Program at The Valley Digital Business School.

With more than 17 years of professional experience in consultancy and energy sector, this engineer and proud mother of 3, is also an active member of Women Action Sustainability, and association which aims promoting the role of women in raising sustainability to the highest level of decision.

What does “#United4EU” evoke for you?

It evokes me ACTION and COLLABORATION, because, we need everyone on board and working together (governments, companies and society) to face the challenges posed by climate change, biodiversity loss and geopolitical confrontations: we need to act from economical, environmental and social perspectives. This means, for the energy sector, guaranteeing a fair and inclusive transition towards a decarbonised energy system.

Do you feel you contribute with your work to the energy transition? If yes, how?

I’m proud of answering a big YES. My role, Head of Sustainability and Environment at Enagás, is entirely focused on ensuring that environmental and social aspects, needed to achieve a fair and inclusive energy transition, are integrated in the strategy of the company and, thus, in every decision and every activity performed by Enagás’ professionals. And I’m glad to say that we are making a good progress, decarbonising our operations and our value chain through energy efficiency and the development of renewable gases, biomethane and renewable hydrogen. We are on the right way towards our commitment to become carbon neutral by 2040.

Do you think that the energy transition is accelerating the opportunities to have a greater diversity in the workforce? If so, how?

Yes, indeed. Decarbonisation requires new solutions, new ideas, there’s still new technology to be developed… and we need diverse ways of thinking, talented people from different cultures, backgrounds and ages, we need both men and women that can provide different perspectives to find solutions. Companies like Enagás are being more and more aware of this need of diverse talent to achieve the transformation required for the energy transition and are developing strategies to attract and retain a diverse talented workforce.

What initiatives is your company driving to create a diverse and inclusive workplace?

Enagás is a company that promotes diversity and inclusion focusing on 6 lines of action: gender, disability, generations, culture, thought and LGTBIQ+. The company seeks a respectful work environment so that people can freely express their opinions. In order to make progress on these axes, the company sets ambitious goals, defines strategies, measures and communicates its progress in these areas. I would like to highlight Enagás’ commitment to encourage the incorporation of women in the energy sector, and promote female leadership in the business.

Meet Torben Brabo

Besides being GIE President, Torben Brabo is SVP on International Relations in Energinet Group, the Danish national transmission system operator for electricity and gas – which is an independent public enterprise owned by the Danish state under the Ministry of Climate, Utilities and Energy.

Mr Brabo has more than 25 years of experience in the energy and gas sector in Denmark and abroad. Part of that as CEO in more than 10 years for the Gas TSO and Gas Storage Denmark (GSD). Prior to joining Energinet, he took part in several European power and gas projects working for European Commission or World Bank, etc. He is also highly involved in Danish and European renewable and low-carbon gas projects. Besides his activities withing GIE, Mr Brabo is also engaged as Board member in ENTSOG (European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas) and the European gas capacity trading platform PRISMA, and promoting ERGAR. Moreover, he participates in several decarbonisation projects, such as Gas for Climate (GfC) and the European Hydrogen Backbone (EHB). He has held a position as chairman of the board of the Danish-Swedish gas exchange ‘Gaspoint Nordic’.

Why are climate and diversity intersecting emergencies?

This climate crisis is a global issue. It concerns all of us. Multiple points of view should, therefore, be considered to ensure an efficient and sustainable transitional process. Sectors, countries, ages, genders: By being united in our diversity, we will move forward. None of us can manage alone; or as we did – we need to renew ourselves. On top of this, it’s key to keep in mind that energy systems are becoming each day more and more complex, integrated and innovative. And sector coupling will play an increasing role in that regard. Knowledge and understanding between the two “silos” (gas and electricity) are, therefore, of prime importance. In fact, it is the chore of Energinet’s strategy as we are an integrated gas-electricity infrastructure company. We have power TSO, gas TSO, Gas storage, Registry for GOs, and extensive data infrastructure/data. This diversity in terms of infrastructure is an asset to best support the EU in enhancing decarbonisation and strengthening the security of supply.

How do equity, diversity and inclusivity in the gas infrastructure business contribute to Europe’s security of supply and decarbonisation goals?

Energinet cannot manage to deliver on the 2030 or 2050 targets without being more diverse, more inclusive and working more in partnerships. We need to brainstorm within the whole energy sector to get better and develop more innovative ideas for future markets, value chains, solutions etc.

Collaboration at the global level represents a tremendous source of inspiration. Energinet work in around 40 countries. It’s key to share knowledge and good practices from other countries to speed up our (national) transition. Decarbonisation is a global task. It should therefore apply an “outside-in” perspective to get good ideas from abroad into our company. Into our solutions.

We apply this openness in multiple projects. A good example of that is Energinet’s “Open source”. This initiative consists in developing IT systems as open source so that everyone can see our codes. One example is how we integrate intermittent wind/sun into our dispatching and balancing markets. It is a win/win situation: everyone can copy them and save time. Everyone can improve the codes and thus have us save time. We need to allow for creative out-of-the-box ideas to be assessed to enable an agile, innovative approach. Some of the ideas turn out bad, and we learn from that. But other ideas become the major changes in the transition.

What solutions have you implemented to foster a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce?

Energinet has a strategy to ensure diversity. It tackles gender, country, age, skills, and different backgrounds. On gender, we have internal targets to improve the gender balance. Our company is growing. Each year, we welcome 20% of Energinet’s staff in plus. And that represents a great opportunity to use those diversity parameters when hiring.

To give you an example, we have agreed to avoid applicants for new positions to mention their origin, age, gender or family relations in their applications. Thus, all are treated equally.

Another point which can help fuel a more diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce is the “free seating” policy. Energinet has introduced a 100% “flexible workplace”, where the employees can decide where the daily work is done – At work or at home? Naturally, you cannot always stay home! That means no one has a fixed desk or office, even the CEO. It offers the opportunity for everyone to meet, exchange and gain flexibility. Everyone can sit and work in different teams and projects. And you can live long away from work, as you only “come in” two, three or four days per week.

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Meet Olga Bielkova

Olga Bielkova joined the management team of Gas TSO of Ukraine LLC in In June 2020 where she is responsible for promoting and protecting the interests of GTSOU in the international arena and among key regulatory bodies.

Previously Member of Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine), three terms 2012-2020: Member of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Finance, tax and customs policy (2019-2020); Deputy Head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Fuel and Energy Complex, Nuclear Policy and Nuclear Safety; Permanent Member of the Ukrainian Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of OSCE (2014-2019); Member of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Finance and Banking (2012-2014).

Throughout the years, Olga has been building her expertise in the following Public Policy focus areas: energy reform and creation of competitive energy markets; unification of energy prices at a market level; transition to more efficient subsidies for energy consumers; establishing an independent energy regulator; ensuring full transparency of the energy sector; fiscal regime improvement for the energy sector; simplification and unification of the regulatory framework for the oil and gas producers; SOE efficiency; improvement of energy SOE’ corporate governance; national energy security, energy independence and diversification of energy suppliers; banking sector reform, digitalisation of Ukraine, gender issues.

Olga holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, a law degree from the Kyiv Shevchenko National University and a degree in economics from the Cherkasy State Engineering University.

How is #United4EU reflected in your work?

Today, we see how the mantra United for Europe is expanded through the position “United for Ukraine”. “United around Ukraine”. As Gas TSO of Ukraine, we experience extraordinary solidarity and support from European companies, organisations, and authorities. Today, in challenging times in the energy sphere, all European countries and businesses are united in overcoming current challenges, especially when it comes to reducing dependence on Russian gas and stabilising gas markets. You would think that each of us is doing it out of self-interest, but this is one of the practical ways to convert the mantra into something useful and pragmatic. Becoming fully independent from Russian gas supplies will be only achieved unitedly when all European countries work together.

How is your company acting in those challenging times?

As Gas TSO, we can only support other countries and market players to pass smoothly during that period of transformation. We offer capacity and continue our business regardless of our own struggles.

Ukraine is committed to open, transparent gas market rules and principles of European solidarity, coming to liberal gas market reform back in 2015. Once the war is over, we will continue the market development according to European regulations, integrating further into the EU.

What does your company implement to support a more diverse, inclusive equitable energy system?

Despite the war and core business related to conventional fossil fuels, we currently make great efforts to foster the development of renewable gases, especially biomethane, to contribute to the decarbonisation and energy transition in Ukraine and Europe. We will continue doing everything possible and beyond to support Europe in gaining independence from Russian energy resources.

What are your recommendations for the energy sector?

First, Europe must achieve energy independence: get alternatives to the Russian gas supply, develop the direction of decarbonisation (biomethane, hydrogen), and reduce the consumption of gases. Second, Ukraine has the potential to help obtain this goal in each segment of the plan. We have gas deposits, we are a promising producer of biomethane, and we have powerful gas storage facilities. My call is to do business with Ukraine to strengthen EU energy security. It will help both Ukraine and Europe to win the war on the energy front.

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Meet Bastian Lang

Dr. Bastian Lang is a Gascade Asset Management and comes from Germany. During his career, Bastian held different positions, which enabled him to deepen his expertise in security, regulatory affairs and methane emissions management. (2011 Environment, Health and Safety Manager – Security concepts, Since 2013 Regulatory Affairs Specialist – Regulatory support for investment decisions, Since 2016 Asset Management Specialist. He contributed to the development and implementation of a company-wide strategy to monitor, report and mitigate methane emissions and also fostered international activities regarding methane regulation, which led him to become Senior expert on methane emissions at GASCADE.

What does “#United4EU” evoke for you?
United4EU means having a common goal for Europe as a society and working on it together as a team.

Why does reducing emissions matter to you? What are you doing about it?
I have children, and I am responsible for them. I wanted to have a bright future for them. Therefore, I try to make things a little bit better. I try to push my company to do a bit more than necessary, which my company has welcomed in many cases in the past. I personally am working a lot from home, using public transportation and so on.

Why are diversity, equity and inclusivity important for the mission of reducing methane emissions?

I think different people are necessary to develop the best solution, which will be a compromise! The impact of methane tackles us all, and therefore all voices are needed.

Many people think methane emissions are not always the most attractive task. Why should the next generations work on this matter?
How is the industry making the topic attractive for minorities?

This is not the sexiest topic, I know. Nevertheless, I have encountered great people from all around the world working on this topic. Due to the actual situation (things are moving really fast on the topic of methane, new regulation, OGMP2,0), we have become a very strong team. We are friends now, and we help each other on that topic. This is, for me, what makes the topic sexy. But we all have in mind to reduce the emissions the best way possible, and this is attractive, because for the companies and also for us as a society it is mandatory! All the different people can make the future better, and this should attract all people in the upcoming year, we will look at H2 with the same focus but different approaches.

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