Member News: ERCB welcomes new COO
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Early on in life, Trevor Dark had a feeling he would end up in public service. That he’d become the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the ERCB was far from apparent then, but that is where his career has led him today.
“I am very honoured to be at the ERCB, to be working with such a respected and effective regulatory agency, with competent and committed staff,” said Dark, who started as COO of the ERCB on October 14. “[ERCB] Chairman Dan McFadyen wants to spend more time on strategic direction with the Board, and my responsibilities will be oversight for the operations side of the ERCB.”
Dark was born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, where he lived until grade nine when he moved with his family to Regina. After high school, he studied economics at the University of Saskatchewan, where he received his bachelor’s degree. He went on to get his Master’s in Economics from McMaster University in Hamilton.
Dark, whose father worked for the Saskatchewan government, began his career in public service in Ottawa working for the federal government. He started in the Foreign Affairs department before moving to the Bureau of Competition Policy, where he helped keep an eye on mergers and acquisitions and watched for transgressions, such as price fixing.
“Being a rookie employee with the Bureau of Competition Policy whet my appetite with regard to regulation, while my job as an economist in Foreign Affairs looking at foreign oil and gas issues whet my appetite for the energy side of things.”
After six years in Ottawa, Dark longed to return to the prairies, and in the early 1980s accepted a strategic planning role with SaskTel, a Crown telecommunications company in Saskatchewan.
From there Dark went to the Crown Investments Corporation, a holding company for all the commercial Crown corporations in Saskatchewan. Next Dark moved to SaskPower to manage the strategic planning department, where he was responsible for the broad scope of electrical competition, regulation, generation plans, and transmission plans for the province.
“This move allowed me to return to my keen interest in energy and regulation,” Dark noted.
After a six-year stint with SaskEnergy, a newly formed Crown corporation responsible for natural gas distribution and transmission within the province, Dark joined the Department of Energy and Mines-later to become the Ministry of Energy and Resources-which was in the process of developing a provincial energy strategy. He stayed with the ministry for almost 15 years, most recently in the role of Assistant Deputy Minister of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Division, where he was responsible for regulating the province’s oil and gas industry.
Dark believes his lengthy career in public service has prepared him well for his new role at the ERCB.
“Having well over 25 years of energy experience both in energy policy and in energy regulation, it’s a great fit coming to work with an agency such as the ERCB,” he said.
Dark says his first step will be to better understand the internal organization of the ERCB.
Over the next while he will review existing processes and procedures and see what, if any, changes could be made to make the organization “even more efficient and effective than it already is.”
Also, in the coming weeks he will tour the ERCB’s 13 different locations across the province in an effort to meet with as many employees as possible.
“Already I am finding that people are extremely helpful, extremely professional, and extremely supportive. Obviously, being one of the Top 40 employers in Alberta speaks to what kind of culture exists within the ERCB and what kind of people we employ,” he said.
Also, Dark looks forward to interacting with energy companies, industry associations, and the public in the role of COO.
In his personal life, Dark plans to pursue his love of golf and hiking and continue his strong connection to the CFL-he was part of the organizing committee in one of the two Grey Cups held in Regina-by cheering on the Saskatchewan Roughriders when they come to Calgary.
“Being from Saskatchewan, I’ve got green blood,” he joked.
Dark is married and has three children, two of whom are studying at the University of Regina; the other is located in Calgary.