Our Staff & Board
STAFF
Laurie Block | Interim Executive Director, TSPA
Laurie Block has extensive experience in the energy industry with over thirty years as an administrative lawyer. Laurie started her career at the Public Utility Commission as an attorney formulating regulatory policy and representing the public interest in contested cases. Laurie has also represented residential consumer and small business interests at the Public Utility Commission of Texas, ERCOT, and in state and federal courts in several roles at the Office of Public Utility Counsel, including Director of Litigation, Special Counsel, General Counsel, and Deputy Public Counsel. Laurie has also served on the Technical Advisory Committee of ERCOT and on national committees for the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates. In addition, Laurie also has experience with environmental issues working as the Special Counsel for the Office of Air at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality providing legal advice and counsel on matters related to air permitting, air quality and developing and administering grants to reduce air emissions. More recently, Laurie has worked as a consultant advising clients on energy matters.
BOARD OFFICERS
President
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Lynnae Willette serves as Director of Regulatory & Legislative Affairs for EDF Renewables. Lynnae leads the policy strategy and implementation for ERCOT, SPP, SERC and several Intermountain West states. She also works closely with her team on Federal policy. Lynnae is a licensed Texas attorney, earning her JD from South Texas College of Law.
Vice President
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Ron Nickelson has more than 20 years of leadership experience in energy, construction, technology and workforce management. Ron cofounded HCS Renewable Energy, a leading solar installer, acquired by Workrise Technologies in 2019. Most recently, Ron served as Head of Construction and Solar of Workrise Technologies (formerly RigUp) a workforce and energy services marketplace, since its founding, the company has raised $752.5 million from 137 Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Baillie Gifford, Bedrock Capital, Brookfield Growth Partners, Founders Fund, Franklin Templeton, and Moore Strategic Ventures. Ron serves as Vice President, and on the Board of Directors for the Texas Solar Association.
Secretary
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Mark Stover leads government and regulatory affairs activities in ERCOT and SPP for Apex Clean Energy, a national leader in utility-scale wind, solar, BESS, and green hydrogen development, construction, and operations.
Mark holds over 20 years of external affairs experience in the electric power industry. Prior to joining Apex in 2017, he ran a consulting practice focused on renewable energy policy and project development. From 2008-2014, Mark served on the management team of a privately funded renewable energy company, Hydro Green Energy (HGE), where he was Vice President of Corporate Affairs. From 2006-2008, Mark worked at Good Company Associates in Austin, TX, where he provided a variety of consulting services to clients in the renewable energy, demand response, and energy efficiency sectors.
Mark’s career began in 1994 in Washington, DC, where he spent 11 years working at three national trade associations, including the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) and the National Hydropower Association (NHA).
Mark graduated from Syracuse University, where he studied political science and foreign affairs. He lives in Austin, TX with his family.
Treasurer
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Justin serves as RWE’s Senior Manager of State Government Relations for Texas and the southeast.
RWE is the fourth largest renewable energy company and the second largest solar owner and operator in the U.S., with a renewable energy portfolio of nearly 8 gigawatts (GW) of installed capacity including solar, battery storage, and onshore wind.
Justin has over 12 years of experience in government relations in Texas, serving for various elected officials and state agencies.
Justin graduated from Texas State University - San Marcos. He lives in Austin, TX.
BOARD
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Hannah Muller is Senior Director of External and Market Affairs, covering the East and Central regions for Clearway. Hannah leads Clearway’s engagement with state and local policymakers, FERC, RTOs/ISOs, and other key stakeholders working to update America’s electric grid and build a resilient, renewables-centric energy system. Prior to entering the private sector, Hannah spent 3 years at the advocacy group Vote Solar, helping run solar campaigns in the southeast and establish community solar markets nationwide. She also spent 5 years at the U.S. Department of Energy solar office, where she managed the Solar America Cities program to jumpstart solar growth in 25 major U.S. cities. Hannah holds degrees in Environmental Policy and Political Economy from UC Santa Barbara and Clark University. She is based in upstate New York.
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Bob Helton is the Director of Government & Regulatory Affairs for Engie North America and has 30 years of experience in the electric industry. He is responsible for developing regulatory/market design policy in support of Engie retail/wholesale business development and market activities within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). This includes extensive participation and advocacy in the Legislative, ERCOT stakeholder and Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) processes for the development and modification of the ERCOT retail and wholesale market design and protocols. Bob holds a Bachelor of Science dlinkedin.com/in/robert-helton-ab629328aegree in nuclear science from the University of Maryland at College Park.
linkedin.com/in/robert-helton-ab629328a
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Tammy Kelch Embrey leads government affairs in Texas for Invenergy, a leading privately held developer and operator of sustainable energy solutions. Tammy has over 20 years of public affairs experience at the local, state, and federal level working for government, trade associations and private industry. Tammy earned her degree in Agriculture Economics from Texas A&M University and enjoys all the benefits of living near the Texas Coast in Corpus Christi.
linkedin.com/in/tammykelchembrey
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Maddy Symm is the Director of State Affairs for Cypress Creek Renewables, supporting development of both community- and transmission-scale PV solar and battery storage in the western United States. Prior to joining Cypress Creek, Maddy spent nearly a decade in the upstream oil and gas sector. Maddy holds a B.S. in Environmental Management and Protection from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and a master’s degree in Public Administration from California State University, Bakersfield.
linkedin.com/in/maddy-symm
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Blan Holman is Vice President for Regulatory Affairs at Pine Gate Renewables, a developer and operator of solar and storage facilities across the U.S. He works on state regulatory and policy matters with a focus on state utility commissions. Blan graduated from the University of North Carolina and the University of Virginia School of Law. He lives in Asheville, NC with his wife and two daughters.
linkedin.com/in/blan-holman-0a7282a5
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Barb Jacobs is director of government relations at Lightsource bp and leads state-level legislative and regulatory advocacy for the company. She has almost two decades of government affairs, advocacy, policy, and non-profit leadership experience. Prior to joining Lightsource bp, Barb covered state legislative and regulatory affairs for the eastern interconnect at Avangrid Renewables, worked for an energy policy think-tank at the University of Minnesota, and as lead committee staff in the Minnesota Senate helped pass landmark solar legislation in 2013. Her many other titles over the years have included board chair, writer, oyster farmer, machinist, flight attendant and short-order breakfast cook. Barb lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her spouse and two young children and has a Masters of Public Affairs from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.
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Timothy Heinle joined OCI Solar Power in 2017 and currently serves as the company’s Executive Vice President of Business Development.
OCI Solar Power is the first utility-scale solar project developer in Texas and a founding member of TSPA.
Timothy has more than 25 years of experience in the independent power sector, having worked in development roles for EDF RE, Siemens, Community Energy, Magellan Resources and Duke Energy.
Timothy received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Government from Georgetown University and his MBA from the College of William & Mary.
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David Minor is the U.S. Operations Manager for the solar division at PCL Construction. David has over 25 years of experience working in the energy sector, of which his last 14 years have been spent working in renewables. David is renowned for being a forward-thinking leader and has found continuous success with integrating new technologies and product systems into the design-build of utility-scale photovoltaic power stations. David actively collaborates with industry partners to stimulate new approaches and techniques for the design, construction and ongoing management of utility-scale solar solutions. David is a graduate of Brock University, where he studied business administration and finance.
linkedin.com/in/davidaminor
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Marshall Coover is the Director of Government Affairs at Treaty Oak Clean Energy. Throughout his fifteen years at the intersection of government, law, and business, he has earned a reputation as an enthusiastic, charismatic, and diligent senior executive. His professional endeavors and accomplishments are broad. He’s served as a trusted advisor to key elected officials like Governor Rick Perry, he’s held senior leadership positions at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, and he’s lobbied and consulted for major industrial facilities. Marshall is a graduate of the Texas Tech School of Law, and he holds an MBA from the McCombs School of Business.
linkedin.com/in/mcoover
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As Manager of Policy and Government Affairs at Recurrent Energy, Cari VanAmburg Collins supports the company’s regulatory, policy and advocacy strategies. She advises on various state regulatory and policy matters, new and existing laws, and regulations in key markets, particularly in PJM. In this role, Cari also helps Recurrent Energy develop its market strategy and approach by providing expertise in clean energy policy as it relates to specific technical issues. Cari’s day-to-day responsibilities require her to build and maintain relationships with key stakeholders including regulators, grid operators, trade associations, and industry partners.
Cari earned a Masters of Political Science from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and holds a B.S. in Political Science from Southeast MO State University. Cari resides in Houston, TX where she is an active member of the Junior League of Houston and a Committeeman of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
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http://solvenergy.com
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Amy Heart is Director of Public Policy with Sunrun. Sunrun is the nation’s leading residential solar, storage and energy services company. Sunrun operates in 23 states including Texas, proudly serving more than 200,000 customers across the country. Amy leads Sunrun’s rooftop solar policy efforts from Great Lakes states to Texas, working to protect and expand families’ access to rooftop solar. Prior to joining Sunrun in 2014, Amy’s experience includes Solar Program Director for City of Milwaukee, and Program Director of the Midwest Renewable Energy Association. Amy is a graduate of University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and earned her Juris Doctorate from Marquette University Law School. You can find her on X @theamyheart.