U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate confirmation of Brad Crabtree by voice vote on April 28 to serve as Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy and Carbon Management at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE):
“I am so grateful to the Senate for confirming Brad Crabtree to serve as DOE’s Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. Brad is considered one of the nation’s top practitioners on carbon capture, storage and utilization, and he could not be joining the Department at a more critical time as we work to slash carbon emissions in every part of our economy and implement the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Brad’s expertise will help us confront the climate crisis while creating good-paying jobs and supporting energy communities in transition. I am thrilled that he’s willing to serve the American people and excited to welcome him into the DOE family.”
Brad Crabtree serves as Vice President for Carbon Management at the Great Plains Institute (GPI) and has nearly three decades experience in energy and climate policy. He leads a national partnership of over 80 companies, labor unions, and conservation and environmental organizations dedicated to economywide adoption of carbon management technologies to meet midcentury climate goals, create high-wage jobs and support domestic energy and industrial production.
Crabtree oversees GPI’s carbon management portfolio; he helped launch the State Carbon Capture Work Group, a 16-state initiative first convened in 2015 to foster commercial deployment of carbon capture and CO2 transport infrastructure. At GPI, he also led efforts to establish the Industrial Innovation Initiative last year in partnership with the World Resources Institute, which brings together leading industrial companies, NGOs, unions and state officials from Midwestern and Gulf Coast states to advance policies aimed at decarbonizing key industries to achieve net-zero emissions.
Crabtree previously coordinated energy policy advisory groups for the Midwestern Governors Association and facilitated the Midwestern Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord Advisory Group for six governors and the Manitoba premier. He also co-directed Powering the Plains, GPI’s original flagship project that developed a comprehensive, 50-year regional blueprint for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and advanced coal technologies. Crabtree has led multiple overseas delegations of U.S. policymakers and private sector leaders to learn firsthand about carbon management and renewable energy technologies and policy experience in other countries.
A North Dakota native, Crabtree is a graduate of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service and has an MA in history from Johns Hopkins University.
