On this Women’s Equality Day and every day, we celebrate the value and diversity of all women driving the success of Sempra and the communities we serve. Among this group of women, we’re highlighting some of our leaders across the Sempra family of companies who are shaping the company’s mission to build North America’s premier energy infrastructure company.
Maryam Brown
President of SoCalGas
Maryam Brown is the president of SoCalGas, the nation’s largest natural gas distribution utility. As president, Brown develops and executes SoCalGas’ strategic vision with a focus on SoCalGas’ aspiration to achieve carbon neutral operations in its delivery of energy by 2045.
Brown was instrumental in unveiling SoCalGas’ [H2] Innovation Experience, demonstrating the potential for clean, renewable hydrogen to be used to power communities and businesses. Additionally, Brown is helping advance the proposed Angeles Link project, which could be the nation’s largest green hydrogen pipeline system and make the Los Angeles basin a clean fuels hub here in the U.S.
Under Brown’s leadership, SoCalGas exceeded California Public Utilities Commission’s diverse spending goal with suppliers for the 30th consecutive year in 2022.
Brown started her career as an engineer in the petroleum refining sector and has 25 years of experience in the energy industry across engineering, legal, policy and regulatory roles. She joined SoCalGas in 2019 from Sempra, where she was vice president, federal government affairs. Before joining Sempra, Brown served as chief energy counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce and subsequently as senior energy and environment counsel for two U.S. House speakers.
Tania Ortiz Mena
Group President, Clean Power and Energy Networks at Sempra Infrastructure
Tania Ortiz Mena is paving the way for the next generation of women in energy. Ortiz Mena is the group president, clean power and energy networks at Sempra Infrastructure. She leads the company’s activities related to clean power generation, natural gas transportation and distribution, and fuel storage facilities in North America.
Ortiz Mena proudly champions women in the energy sector and is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture at Sempra Infrastructure. She recently participated in the U.S.-Mexico Forum 2023 along with other energy leaders and think-tanks to share ideas on advancing North America’s energy transition. Ortiz Mena was also recognized as one of the “Leading Women with the Best Reputation” on issues of environmental, social and governance in 2022 by Merco.
Most recently, Ortiz Mena was IEnova’s chief executive officer from September 2018 to September 2021, and a member of the Board of Directors since January 2019. She began her career at IEnova in 2000, holding different positions, including vice president of external affairs and development, and chief development officer.
Caroline Winn
CEO at SDG&E
Being the only female in her graduating engineering class, Caroline Winn knew then that she wanted to pave the road for change. Fast forward to her current role as the chief executive officer for SDG&E, Winn has spent much of her career advocating for programs that expose more girls to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, and assuring them that they can be leaders in these fields.
Under Winn’s leadership, SDG&E has received the ReliabilityOne® Awards for Outstanding Reliability Performance among utilities on the west coast for 17 consecutive years. With Winn’s tenacity for innovation, SDG&E was the first utility in the country to develop a dedicated Fire Science & Climate Adaptation department. SDG&E has created models with the help of artificial intelligence for its weather stations, which improves the accuracy of forecasts and monitors wildfire threats. SDG&E also exceeded California Public Utilities Commission’s diverse spending goal with suppliers for the 18th consecutive year in 2022.
Previously, she served as the chief operating officer of SDG&E, overseeing operations of the utility’s natural gas and electric infrastructure assets and customer services. In that role, Winn is widely recognized for advancing SDG&E’s national reputation in sustainability, technology and innovation, including the company’s significant safety and wildfire mitigation efforts.
Since joining the company in 1986 as an associate engineer, Winn has held several leadership positions within SDG&E and SoCalGas. In 2022, Winn was named to the California Power 50 list, recognizing women with senior-level roles from top companies who are making an impact in their companies and communities.
