Five natural gas utilities have committed $45 million to an Energy Capital Venture (ECV) fund to bolster digital advancements along with environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategies within the natural gas industry. 

Chicago-based ECV was founded in 2020 to focus on local distribution companies and natural gas utilities with an eye on creating a more sustainable future for the fossil fuel industry. The firm primarily invests in companies with interests in technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), hydrogen, cybersecurity, methane capture/utilization, drone maintenance and decarbonization. 

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The contributing utilities include