The Energy Pragmatist

Where are family offices finding compelling energy investments, and why do some opportunities remain overlooked by institutional capital?

In this episode of The Energy Pragmatist, Ben West sits down with Eric Adams Partner, Co-Chief Investment Officer at JFG Family Offices, a multifamily office serving approximately 140 families, to explore how an allocator evaluates opportunities across energy and real assets.

Eric explains why industry consolidation is bringing producing oil and gas assets to market, why he believes energy secondaries remain undercapitalised, and how JFG balances cash flow, downside protection and growth across different family portfolios.

The conversation covers:

• Producing oil and gas wells, mineral royalties and their different risk profiles

• Manager selection, hedging and disciplined entry valuations

• Natural gas power generation, geothermal and nuclear

• Sourcing opportunities that fall outside institutional investment mandates

• The infrastructure, hardware and critical minerals supporting AI and electrificationAn allocator’s perspective on identifying value, assessing risk and putting capital to work across the energy investment landscape.

This episode is for informational and educational purposes only. The views expressed are those of Greg Reid as of the recording date and may change without notice. Nothing discussed is investment, legal, or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. It is not an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, an interest in any fund or investment product. Any such offer is made only through confidential offering documents to qualified investors. References to specific companies, managers, transactions, and market data are for illustration only, and Westwood and its clients may hold positions in securities discussed. Forward-looking statements and market views are estimates and may not occur as described. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

Ben West interviews Greg Reid, President of Real Assets at Westwood Group Holdings and Lead PM for the firm's $2.7 billion Energy Investment Team, investing across both public and private energy markets with a focus on energy secondaries and continuation funds.They discuss why GP led continuation vehicles have become the fastest growing part of the energy secondaries market, with over six billion dollars of deals currently in the pipeline.

Greg explains that this is being driven by a wave of funds from the 2008 to 2017 vintages now reaching the end of their life, creating an opportunity to get into already performing, well understood assets at a discount rather than backing a blind pool.Greg also walks through how Westwood diligences a GP, buying EMP assets at around two times cash flow with no debt, and why the firm has pivoted toward natural gas, midstream and LNG as oil has become overvalued relative to its five year strip. He shares the thinking behind Westwood's first purchase of a stake in a GP, and where he sees the next big secondary opportunity showing up.

This episode is for informational and educational purposes only. The views expressed are those of Greg Reid as of the recording date and may change without notice. Nothing discussed is investment, legal, or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. It is not an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, an interest in any fund or investment product. Any such offer is made only through confidential offering documents to qualified investors. References to specific companies, managers, transactions, and market data are for illustration only, and Westwood and its clients may hold positions in securities discussed. Forward-looking statements and market views are estimates and may not occur as described. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.

Canadian oil provides 8x the sustainable free cash flow of US shale 

Recorded live at the invitation-only PRAGMA New York Energy Investment Series at Nasdaq MarketSite, this special episode features Amandeep Singh, Managing Director at Alvarez & Marsal, in conversation with Adam Waterous, Founder and Executive Chairman of Waterous Energy Fund. The discussion offers a rare insight into the perspectives shared among industry leaders, institutional investors and executives.

Adam discusses the investment strategy behind Waterous Energy Fund, the value of taking a contrarian approach to energy investing, and why managing commodity price risk begins with owning high-quality assets defined by low break-even costs and long reserve lives. The conversation also explores the evolving outlook for the Canadian and U.S. energy sectors, and why Canada is well positioned for long-term production growth.

Ben West interviews Blake London, Managing Partner of Formentera Partners, on why short term market volatility can obscure the long term investment opportunity in energy.

Against a backdrop of geopolitical uncertainty, shifting commodity prices and growing global energy demand, they discuss why investors need to look beyond the current cycle. The conversation explores the shift from energy transition to “energy addition,” the outlook for upstream investment, opportunities in international shale, the role of hedging in managing volatility and how ABS financing is changing the energy M&A market.

Blake also shares his perspective on where investors may be underestimating the long term opportunity and what it will take for energy to compete more effectively for institutional capital.

What does it take to invest through energy volatility?

In this episode, Ben West sits down with Neda Jafar, Partner at Kimmeridge, to explore how investors can navigate uncertainty across energy markets.

Six months ago, when this conversation was recorded, the market backdrop looked very different. Oil prices, geopolitical risks, AI-driven power demand, and the growing strategic importance of natural gas had yet to dominate headlines in the way they do today.

Yet one of the reasons we wanted to release this discussion now is that the core investment principles outlined by Neda remain remarkably durable, regardless of where commodity prices sit or what the macro environment looks like.

Neda explains why successful energy investing is ultimately less about predicting the next move in oil or gas prices and more about disciplined underwriting, asset quality, balance sheet strength, and understanding where you sit on the cost curve.

Together, Ben and Neda discuss:

• Why asset quality and cost of entry matter more than short-term commodity price forecasts

• The importance of stress testing downside scenarios and ensuring businesses can survive periods of volatility

• Why being at the front end of the cost curve is one of the few reliable protections in a cyclical sector

• How capital discipline, conservative leverage, and strong balance sheets create resilience through market cycles

• The role of technical expertise in separating genuine value opportunities from value traps

• Why investors should focus on underlying asset value rather than market consensus or headline multiples

• How natural gas has evolved from a controversial fuel source into a critical component of global energy security, AI infrastructure, and power reliability

• The long-term implications of data centre growth, LNG exports, and the emergence of a more globally connected gas market

Perhaps most importantly, Neda explains how investors can position themselves to not only withstand volatility but use it to their advantage.

Whether oil is $50, $80 or $100 per barrel, the framework remains the same: own high quality assets, partner with technically capable operators, maintain balance sheet discipline, and never lose sight of downside protection.

For generalist investors looking to understand how experienced energy investors navigate uncertainty, this conversation offers a valuable blueprint that is just as relevant today as it was when we recorded it.

Methane has become one of the biggest topics in oil and gas, but the conversation is changing. It's no longer just about adding more sensors or collecting more data. It's about using that data effectively.In this episode, Ben West sits down with Will Foiles, Co Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Project Canary, to discuss how methane management is evolving, why operators are moving towards a mix of monitoring technologies, and where AI and machine learning can help improve decision making and operational performance.They also explore how changing US regulations are affecting methane strategies, whether companies are spending emissions budgets more effectively, and how better data could create value for operators, investors, and asset buyers alike.

In this episode of The Energy Pragmatist, Ben West sits down with Michael Rigg, Chief Investment Officer, Diversified Energy Company, to discuss the evolving landscape of upstream oil and gas investing, the rise of asset-backed securitizations (ABS), and why many investors may still be underestimating the long-term opportunity across the energy sector.

Drawing on his experience leading business development and M&A at Diversified Energy Company, Michael explains how the company has built a differentiated strategy around PDP-heavy acquisitions, durable free cash flow, and long-life asset optimization. The conversation explores how ABS financing has reshaped upstream valuations, why capital is flowing back into PDP assets, and how Diversified is positioning itself for the next phase of growth.

The discussion also dives into the broader macro backdrop shaping oil and gas markets today, including geopolitical risk, OPEC dynamics, LNG demand growth, AI-driven power demand, and the changing behavior of both public and private operators.

In this episode of The Energy Pragmatist, Ben West sits down with Mark Wade, Partner at CAZ Investments to discuss why energy is becoming attractive to generalist investors again.

The conversation explores U.S. natural gas, LNG export growth, power demand driven by AI and data centers, geopolitical risk in global energy markets, and why private energy assets remain undervalued relative to broader private markets.

Mark also shares how CAZ Investments approaches thematic investing, manager selection, downside protection, and where he sees the most compelling opportunities across upstream, midstream, infrastructure, and power markets today.

In this episode of The Energy Pragmatist, interviewer Ben West sits down with Ken Hersh, Chairman of HFI Capital Management and co-founder of NGP, for a wide-ranging conversation on commodity cycles, geopolitics, and the evolving investment landscape in oil and gas. Drawing on decades of experience, Hersh shares lessons from building one of the most influential energy private equity firms, discusses why successful investing ultimately comes down to backing great people, and unpacks how today’s market volatility, LNG demand, and global supply risks are reshaping energy markets. The discussion offers valuable insights for family offices and long-term investors navigating the future of energy investing.

In this episode, Amy Miller sits down with Rob to unpack one of the most powerful forces shaping energy today: AI.

From oilfields to manufacturing lines, they explore how AI is quietly transforming the industry, driving efficiency, lowering costs, and challenging assumptions around future power demand. Rob explains why AI is both the biggest risk and the biggest opportunity, and why its impact may be less about massive data centres and more about thousands of small, high-impact applications.

The conversation also dives into what this means for gas demand, LNG growth, and how energy markets could evolve as technology, geopolitics, and consumption patterns shift in parallel.