Nooshin Behroyan

On Sept. 9, 2010, a natural gas pipeline exploded in San Bruno, Calif., devastating the San Francisco suburb with a fireball that shot 1,000 feet into the air. The blast destroyed 38 homes, damaged 70 others and killed eight people.

It also seized the attention of a young environmental engineer who became intrigued about the root causes of such an event and what could be done to avoid similar disasters in the future.

“It was this curiosity and my desire to make a meaningful contribution that inspired me to join the industry, particularly in the emergency response group,” said Nooshin Behroyan. “This role allowed me to gain in-depth insights into the processes, post-repair procedures and crucial safety measures required to enhance the industry’s safety and reliability.”

A few years later, she posed a fundamental question to executives of a major California utility: “Do we know how much methane our operations release into the atmosphere?”

They didn’t.

“They suggested putting it in a presentation, which became my signature project, and Paxon Energy was born,” Behroyan said. “Between 2013 and 2016, I developed three groundbreaking programs, inspired by the San Bruno incident.”

Paxon has established itself as one of the country’s fastest-growing businesses, achieving $350 million in contract revenue in just its seventh year. In the last year, Paxon operations have recovered 830,000 tons of methane directly from natural gas pipeline projects using its cross-compression technologies. That’s the equivalent of keeping 23 million tons of CO₂ from escaping into the atmosphere, or enough fuel savings to power 1 million homes for a year.

Behroyan’s motivation is her hope that she can lead by example and inspire more women to pursue careers in the oil and gas field. She is also driven to find solutions to address climate change challenges while meeting the world’s energy demands—and not sacrificing one for the other.

“When I initially founded Paxon, my objective as an environmental engineer was to contribute to the energy industry and drive substantial change in the context of climate change,” she said. “Today, this goal continues to be the central focus of my mission. What’s even more gratifying is witnessing how the industry has transformed into a strong partner in this shared endeavor.”

But to thrive in the future, Behroyan said, the industry must shift its focus from carbon credit trading to large-scale adoption of advanced technologies like methane recapture. The industry should support initiatives to effectively reduce methane emissions and address climate change.

Behroyan attributes much of her success to her education.

“If it weren’t for my master’s degree in environmental engineering from UC Davis, I wouldn’t be doing what I do today,” she said. “As a result, I have developed the discipline of being a lifelong learner. I regularly participate in executive management and leadership programs each year to keep my skills sharp and expand my knowledge and empathetic intelligence.”

She has learned to leverage her voice as a female executive and engineer to navigate the predominantly male-dominated oil and gas industry.

“Being, often, the sole woman in the room has underscored the significance of my voice transcending gender boundaries,” Behroyan said. “I’ve come to understand that my voice, as a woman, possesses the capacity to influence, inspire, advocate and drive meaningful change. However, it demands determination, courage and a clear vision to represent and surpass stereotypes.”

Her advice to young professionals, particularly women, is to leave the comfort zone behind.

“Be scared, do it anyway,” Behroyan said. “Be underqualified, and get in the room anyway; be imperfect and unsure, but show up anyway. Because comfort is the enemy of growth. Get uncomfortable.”

Check out the rest of Hart Energy's 2024 Women in Energy here.