Emil Peña
Executive Director
Emil Peña serves as Executive Director of the Global Energy Safety Institute, an organization transitioning NASA space program knowledge and technologies into the energy sector for oil, gas, utilities and renewables.
Prior to holding his current jobs and positions, Mr. Peña was Executive Director of National Corrosion Center at Rice University, as well as the Energy and Environmental Systems Institute. In this job he managed faculty and student led programs and initiatives focused on research in material science, energy and the environment, integrating with the private industry in the energy and corrosion space. He dealt with utility infrastructures, conventional oil and gas technologies as well as sustainables.
He previously served in the Clinton Administration, in the U.S. Department of Energy as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy overseeing the Office of Natural Gas and Petroleum Technology, in the Office of Fossil Energy and was responsible for administering oil and gas programs including research and development, planning and environmental analysis, and import and export LNG activities.
Gary Benson
CHIEF Operating OFFICER
Gary Benson serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Global Energy Safety Institute, an organization transitioning NASA space program knowledge and technologies into the energy sector for oil, gas, utilities and renewables.
In conjunction with this role, Mr. Benson is also the Chief Executive Officer of ProNevis Advisory Group. In this job he leads a management consultancy and advisory group providing Executive / Retained Search services and senior level consultancy services to the energy market.
He has over 25 years of Oil and Gas experience, having previously worked for KBR in the UK, ExxonMobil in the US / Australia and for Chevron in the Far East on various Oil & Gas projects including the successful PNG LNG project.
Mr. Benson also has experience of working for Orion Group, a leading international recruitment services company, where he was their Chief Operating Officer for the Americas region.