Natural gas group taps Anadarko CEO as chairman

America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA), a year-old coalition of independent natural gas producers, on Monday announced that Anadarko Petroleum Corp. CEO Jim Hackett will serve as its new chairman.

Anadarko is one of the world’s biggest independent oil-and-gas companies. ANGA – which now represents 34 companies – is an advocacy group that is pushing for a range of natural gas-friendly measures in climate and energy legislation.

“As a country, we need to fully utilize this clean-burning, abundant, domestic resource that has the potential to create jobs throughout North America, enhance energy security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil, and advance a cleaner, lower-carbon energy future in our communities,” Hackett said in a prepared statement Monday.

Hackett succeeds David Trice, the group’s founding chairman who is the retired CEO of Newfield Exploration Co. Hackett is the former president of Devon Energy Corp., another large producer, and has also worked for several other energy companies.