Fred C. Julander, a champion of Rocky Mountain natural gas and a founder of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association (COGA), has died. Julander, who founded Julander Energy Co., in his storied career participated in the discovery of the Teardrop field’s Lewis sands in Moffat County, CO, and in the Atlantic Rim coalbed methane field in Carbon County, WY. In the late 1980s, he joined with Colorado utilities to help found the Rockies’ first natural gas vehicle company, Natural Fuels Corp., which eventually was absorbed by T. Boone Pickens’ Clean Energy Fuels Corp. In 1989 Julander helped found COGA’s original Rocky Mountain Natural Gas Strategy Conference, which has become annual The Energy Summit. He served as chairman until 2013. Julander also was a member of the National Petroleum Council, charged with advising the Secretary of Energy oil and gas issues. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of New Mexico and a juris doctorate from the University of Iowa Law School. Julander “was a seminal figure within our industry and was always supportive of our association,” said COGA CEO Dan Haley. “His health had been failing in recent years, so we saw less of him at our board meetings, but Fred’s spirit was always with us and will continue to be with our association as we go forward.”