energy advocates gather to support oil and gas production

For Chevron’s Birlie Bourgeois, Texas Energy Day is about much more than business—it’s personal.

“I feel that what we do makes a difference,” said Bourgeois, a Permian Basin asset manager participating in the annual Austin event. Texas Energy Day focuses on education and support for oil and gas production in his home state and is led by the Chevron Advocacy Network.

“When I go to work every day, I’m not only there for a paycheck or to help maximize profits for Chevron,” he added. “I’m there because I know that the energy we produce allows people around the world to have the quality of life that we take for granted here. That’s what really drives me.”

Bourgeois didn’t land in the energy sector by coincidence. The engineer chose oil and gas because he saw an opportunity to make a difference.

“I have four daughters, and I want the best for them,” he said. “It’s not just helping them get into the best schools, it’s about having a lower carbon environment for them in the future as well.”

It’s a message he hoped to share with lawmakers at the state capitol this month during Texas Energy Day—an event first held in 2017—while highlighting Chevron’s lower carbon efforts in the Permian Basin. We are working to reduce our impact there through centralized facilities, improved methane detection capabilities and flaring reductions.

Lonnie Evans, an emergency management advisor at Chevron, said ahead of the event that his hope is to open the floor to honest dialogue.

“I’m not going there with an agenda,” he said. “I'm going to accurately represent Chevron, answer questions and challenge misconceptions.”

Evans, a sixth-generation Texan and father of two, said his participation in Texas Energy Day was both a personal and professional mission as well.

“I have a Texas lineage. My family, home and heritage are all Texas,” he said. “I care about the state, and I want to help make it better for future generations.”