Advisory Services

I advise automakers, fuel producers, governments and other organizations on the legal, regulatory, market and technology developments shaping transportation energy.  I help senior leaders understand what those developments mean for risk, compliance, investment and competitive positioning.

Engagements range from focused analyses and executive briefings to scenario planning, regulatory strategy and ongoing advisory support. Drawing on nearly 30 years across law, policy and business, I translate complex and often contested issues into practical strategies and clear choices for senior leadership teams and boards.

How I Help Clients

  • Regulatory and Legal Strategy: Assessing regulatory proposals, legislation, litigation and agency actions and translating them into business implications, strategic options and regulatory positions. Representative example: Evaluating how alternative federal and California vehicle-emissions outcomes could affect an automaker’s compliance strategy and product planning.
  • Market and Competitive Intelligence: Connecting developments across fuels, vehicles, infrastructure, policy and technology to identify emerging risks, opportunities and competitive shifts. Representative example: Providing ongoing intelligence on fuel, vehicle and policy developments to support a global company’s technology and market planning.
  • Business Strategy and Decision Support: Helping senior leaders frame the central questions, develop scenarios and compare practical options for responding to policy and market change. Representative example: Evaluating the policy, infrastructure and commercial conditions needed to introduce a lower-carbon fuel into a new market.
  • Stakeholder Engagement: Gathering and interpreting perspectives from industry, government, technical and nonprofit stakeholders and helping clients prepare for effective engagement. Representative example: Consulting refiners, fuel retailers, trade associations and technical experts to test the commercial feasibility of a proposed fuel pathway.

  • Executive Briefings and Communications: Preparing focused reports, briefings and presentations that explain what complex developments mean and what choices an organization should consider. Representative example: Briefing senior executives on the strategic implications of a major regulation, court decision or sudden market shift.

Recent Engagements

  • Fuel-Vehicle Competitive Intelligence for Automaker: Delivered ongoing tracking and analysis of U.S. fuel-vehicle developments, including low-carbon fuel initiatives, emissions regulations, and zero-emission vehicle trends, enabling strategic planning for future powertrain developments.

  • Advanced Biofuels Business and Regulatory Strategy: Conducted a market assessment for an advanced biofuels company, evaluating policy impacts and market potential, which supported a successful government loan application for a production facility.

  • Ethanol Supply and Demand Study for Advocacy: Provided a detailed analysis for a trade group, outlining business and regulatory pathways to achieve national consumption targets, informing advocacy strategies with regulatory bodies.

  • Emerging Technologies Competitive Analysis: Delivered competitive intelligence on emerging transport energy technologies, enabling strategic planning and risk management for a leading industry client.

Companies I've worked With

  • Auto: Honda, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, Toyota

  • Oil/Refining/Energy: BP, Irving Oil, Japan Petroleum Energy Center, Neste, OPEC, PEMEX, Petronas, Phillips66, Shell, TotalEnergies, Chevron Corporation, Marathon Petroleum Corporation, ExxonMobil

  • Government: Australia Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment & Water, Brazil Petroleum Agency, Environment and Climate Change Canada, European Commission DG Energy, Natural Resources Canada, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Management Authority (Singapore)

  • Non-Profit: International Energy Agency, Natural Resources Defense Council, United Nations Environment Program

  • Low Carbon Fuels: Cargill, CHS, Renewable Energy Group, Braya Renewable Fuels, Renewable Fuels Association, ICM, Inc., Velocys, LanzaTech