During his 25-year tenure at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), he supervised interdisciplinary teams of scientists and engineers in preparing FERC environmental documents and draft licenses. Notably, he spearheaded efforts to streamline FERC regulatory processes for both conventional and marine hydropower through formal rulemaking and intergovernmental agreements. Additionally, he served as a neutral facilitator for FERC licensing settlement agreements among diverse governmental and non-governmental stakeholders.
Following his time at FERC, Mr. Welch took the helm of the Department of Energy's (DOE) $60M hydropower technology R&D program, overseeing initiatives such as DOE's groundbreaking 2016 Hydropower Vision report, which outlined a 30-year growth trajectory for conventional and pumped storage hydropower.
Before joining the SMI team, Mr. Welch played a key role in developing and implementing the DOE Grid Deployment Office's $750M hydroelectric incentives program funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure law.
Tim presently holds a position on the Advisory Board of the Low Impact Hydropower Institute (LIHI). With a background as a trained fishery biologist, he earned his Bachelor's degree from Cornell University and a Master's degree from Frostburg State University.