American Oil and Gas Reporter - August 2023 - 97

ConventionSec tion: Eastern Kansas Oil & Gas Association
One Size Does Not Fit All
For Methane Rules
By Del Torkelson
BURLINGTON, KS.-Although he
has not been the cause, Bryson Owens
has seen some changes since becoming
president of the Eastern Kansas Oil &
Gas Association.
Since Owens' presidency began in
Sept. 2022, the group has changed executive
directors more than once, and
much will be different from last year-
including the location-when EKOGA
gathers for its 2023 Annual Meeting,
scheduled for Sept. 27-28 in Pittsburg,
Ks. Nevertheless, reflects Owens, owner
of Owens Oil Co. in Burlington, the
important things have stayed constant,
particularly the association's mission
of representing the small, independent
oil and gas producers that dot the eastern
portion of the Sunflower State.
" When people ask what I would do if
I won the lottery, I say I would do the
exact same thing on a bigger scale, " he
relates. " I think most EKOGA members
are the same. We are all very dedicated
to what we do, and so when you bring a
lot of EKOGA members into the same
room at the annual meeting, it is an opportunity
to learn. None of us has all the
answers, so being able to talk with colleagues
is very valuable. "
New EKOGA Executive Director Brian
Posler started work in mid-July, accepting
the baton from interim Executive
Director David Lybarger, who succeeded
Becky Schwartz after she held the position
for a few months following Tom
Palace's retirement late last year. EKOGA's
staffing is overseen by Fuel True,
a nonprofit that represents Kansas' independent
energy marketers and convenience
store owners, and that Posler
also serves as executive director.
As he bows out as the association's
temporary top staff member, Lybarger
expresses confidence that EKOGA has
found the right person to head its daily
operations. " Brian is very capable, " he
describes. " He is going to be a tremendous
asset to EKOGA and his leadership will
be impactful. "
According to Lybarger, EKOGA will
" A lot of EPA requirements make perfect sense, and we
do our best to go above and beyond to make sure we are
in compliance. But what EPA has proposed about small
wells' methane emissions attempts to fix something that
is not broken. "
-Bryson Owens
EKOGA President
benefit from Posler's talents, skills and
strengths. The new executive director arrives
with a Ph.D. in political science,
most recently serving as president of
Lake Erie College in Painesville, Oh.
Lybarger adds that Posler and his wife
are both Kansas natives who are happy
to return to their home state.
" Brian is a quick study. He was impeccably
prepared for all the interactions
he had with the search committee, " Lybarger
affirms. " His interpersonal communication
skills are exemplary, and his
other experience includes work as a legislative
staffer. That work involved oil
and gas policy and helped him develop a
passion for both politics and all things
petroleum-both upstream and down. "
Posler says his immediate priority is
to build relationships with EKOGA
members, which includes trips to the
field with members to better understand
them and their operations. " It will help
me get my head around what they do, "
he suggests. " I also will engage our
contract lobbyists to make introductions
and start building relationships with key
policymakers. "
He mentions that beginning the new
position has broadened his perspective
about many of the companies that populate
the state's oil and gas industry. " Many
members are small, family-owned businesses, "
Posler observes. " Their commitment
to their employees and to building
their companies from the ground up has
made a big impression. "
Oil Field Roots
Although EKOGA membership frequently
is a value that older generations
pass down to younger ones, Owens acknowledges
that dynamic has worked in
the opposite direction for his family. His
parents, Scott & Jody Owens, launched
Owens Petroleum in the mid-1980s, and
young Bryson quickly began accumulating
firsthand oil field experience.
" When I was younger, we were a service
company with a few oil leases, " he
recounts. " In 2010, Dad purchased a
drilling rig. I was on that from the day I
graduated high school. "
While drilling contract wells, Owens
says, both Owens Oil Co. and Owens
Petroleum acquired progressively more
production. " Nowadays-although we
occasionally assist people who ask us to
help with their wells-most of our income
comes from production, " he reports. " Our
production companies are 99% self-sustaining
and self-sufficient. We have all
the equipment we need and almost never
hire third-party contractors. We do not
log, perf or fracture wells, but we do
everything else. "
Owens Oil Co. first joined the association
on the recommendation of Owens'
friend, EKOGA Immediate Past-President
Chris McGown, Owens recounts. " I got
involved and started going to everything, "
he says. " Now my parents have joined
and also are involved, but I was the one
who brought us in. "
Owens says both companies' production
AUGUST 2023 97
American Oil and Gas Reporter - August 2023

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