Monday, May 19th and Tuesday May 20th, United States Deputy Energy Secretary Daniel Poneman will visit Santiago as part of a broader effort to reinforce the strong bilateral relationship between the U.S. and Chile.
His trip precedes Chilean President Michelle Bachelet’s visit to the United States to meet with President Obama in June, and will further the dialogue about securing the energy futures of both nations and strengthening this important partnership.
In recent years, the United States and Chile have collaborated in the field of renewable energy, including the Department of Energy’s efforts to promote solar and geothermal technologies in Chile, as well as the opening of the Renewable Energy Center in Chile in 2009.
Chile has also actively participated in the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA), an initiative promoted by President Obama that aims to promote the development of clean energy in the hemisphere.
Deputy Secretary Poneman’s agenda for his visit includes a series of meetings with authorities of the Chilean government, legislators, and representatives from the private sector.
Daniel B. Poneman
Daniel Poneman was nominated Deputy Secretary of Energy for the United States by President Obama in April of 2009 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on the 18th of May that year. During the first Obama Administration he served under former Secretary of Energy Steven Chu. Following the reelection of President Obama, he took over the agency on an interim basis during the pre-appointment period of the current head of the department, Ernest Moniz.
Daniel Poneman has worked extensively in the public and private service. In 1989 he worked as a White House Fellow and was appointed to the U.S. Department of Energy. The following year he joined the National Security Council as Director of Defense Policy and Arms Control and was subsequently appointed Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Nonproliferation and Export Controls at the National Security Council.
After leaving the White House in 1996, Poneman served as a member of the Commission to Assess the Organization of the Federal Government to Combat the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction in addition to a number of other federal advisory panels.
Prior to assuming his responsibilities as U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy, Poneman worked as principal of The Scowcroft Group for eight years, providing strategic advice to corporations on a variety of international projects and transactions.
Poneman is the author of numerous publications and materials relating to national security matters. He wrote the book “Nuclear Power in the Developing World and Argentina: Democracy on Trial” and in 2005 his third book “Going Critical: The First North Korean Nuclear Crisis”, co-authored with Joel Wit and Robert Gallucci, won the Douglas Dillon Award for Distinguished Writing on American Diplomacy. Poneman is also a member of the Council of Foreign Relations.
Daniel Poneman received A.B. and J.D. degrees with honors from Harvard University and an M. Litt in Politics from Oxford University.
