Steven M. Murphy is senior vice president and chief operating officer for Southern Company Gas, with responsibility for designing and maintaining the integrity of the company’s infrastructure and standardizing operating procedures. 

With a focus on engineering and operations, Murphy has more than 32 years of company experience. In his previous role as vice president of engineering and construction for Southern Company Gas, Murphy was responsible for all aspects of engineering, construction and project management for the Southern Company Gas enterprise, including storage assets and new pipeline and related infrastructure for the company’s four distribution companies: Atlanta Gas Light, Chattanooga Gas, Nicor Gas and Virginia Natural Gas, where he oversees an annual capital budget of more than $1.7 billion.

Murphy has held numerous leadership positions since joining Southern Company Gas in 1992, including managing director of operations services and managing director of engineering management. In this position, he directed design engineering for Southern Company Gas’ distribution companies, geographic information system support services, compliance and system integrity, and the Office of Corporate Engineering.  

Murphy currently serves on the board of directors of Southern Natural Gas, a 7,000-mile natural gas pipeline system supplying one of the fastest-growing natural gas demand regions in the United States. He is a member of the American Gas Association’s Operations & Engineering Committee and has previously served on the Southern Gas Association’s Pipeline Operations and Engineering Section Managing Committee, the Virginia State Corporation Commission’s Damage Prevention Advisory Committee, and the advisory board of the Hampton Roads, Virginia, Salvation Army.

Murphy earned a civil engineering degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in business administration from Georgia State University. He is certified by the National Society of Professional Engineers and has completed the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management Executive Development Program.