
Barry Smitherman
CHAIRMAN
Barry Smitherman is the Chairman, President, and co-founder of the Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance (TxGEA), which advocates for the Texas geothermal industry. He is also an independent director at CenterPoint Energy, a Houston-based utility serving millions of electric and gas customers across six states.
Barry previously served as Chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission (2012–2014) and the Public Utility Commission of Texas (2004–2011). During his tenure, he held leadership roles on national and regional energy committees, including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Electricity Advisory Committee and the ERCOT Board of Directors.
He has also served on various civic and educational boards, including Ballet Austin and the Eanes ISD Educational Foundation. Barry earned degrees from Texas A&M University (B.B.A.), Harvard University (M.P.A.), and The University of Texas School of Law (J.D.).
Matt Welch
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
Matt Welch is the co-founder of the Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance (TxGEA) and currently serves as the Executive Vice President of the organization. He is a veteran public affairs consultant with over 30 years of experience in government relations, policy advocacy and public affairs at the local, state, and federal level.
Previously, Matt served as Legislative & PAC Director for Texans for Lawsuit Reform (TLR), overseeing over 150 political campaigns. He has held roles such as Deputy Regional Director for U.S. Senator Phil Gramm, Press Secretary for Congressman Kevin Brady, Communications Director for the Texas Republican House Caucus, and Campaign Spokesperson for State Senator Larry Taylor. He also served as campaign spokesman for
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (2016–2018).
Matt has led impactful public affairs initiatives on civil justice reform, military voting rights, clean energy advocacy, and more. A champion of free markets, smaller government, and personal freedom, he has been at the forefront of promoting innovative policy solutions throughout his professional career.
A native of Euless, Texas, Matt holds a Political Science degree from Texas A&M University. He advises “Thirst No More,” a nonprofit focused on clean water in developing countries, and has held leadership roles with Leadership Austin and the Austin Cycling Association.


Ben Sebree
General Counsel
Ben Sebree is a licensed attorney and experienced governmental relations practitioner. His long and effective career in Austin is well recognized by his peers and the energy industry. Sebree served as Vice-President and General Counsel for the Texas Oil and Gas Association for over 20 years. He was also appointed by Governor Perry to the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission and was elected to the Governing Council of the Oil, Gas and Energy Law Section of the State Bar of Texas.
Ben possesses an institutional knowledge of Texas legislative, regulatory, and public policy matters, especially regarding geothermal energy, oil & gas, water, tax, and environmental matters including the varying positions of different industry sectors, business entities, and interested parties. He is a graduate of the University of Texas with a BA in English and received his law degree from the University of Houston College of Law.
cindy taff
POLICY COMMITTEE CHAIR
Cindy Taff has over 35 years in the O&G industry, most recently as VP of Shell’s global Unconventional Wells operations. She led a team of over 350 Shell staff and 1200 contractors across five countries, accountable for an annual spend of $1 billion. Cindy is the CEO of Sage Geosystems, a growing company based in Houston providing solutions for both energy storage and geothermal base production deep in the earth.


Jade Gillespie
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Jade Gillespie serves as the Executive Director of the Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance (TxGEA), leading efforts to promote geothermal energy development across Texas. Previously, she was the Director of Programs for Conservative Texans for Energy Innovation, where she championed clean energy initiatives through strategic education and advocacy.
Jade’s public service experience includes roles in the Texas and U.S. Houses of Representatives, where she contributed to legislative efforts and provided constituent support for communities across Texas.
A proud United States Air Force veteran, Jade brings valuable leadership and operational expertise from her military service. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with a minor in Public Relations from Texas Tech University.
The Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance
The Texas Geothermal Energy Alliance (TXGEA) is a Texas-based, Texas-led advocacy organization created for the purpose of advancing geothermal energy in Texas.
TxGEA is comprised of a broad and interdisciplinary group of entities engaged in geothermal resource exploration, well drilling, plant construction, resource production and markets. These supporters include representatives from the oilfield service sector, oil & gas operators, utilities, start-up companies working to advance geothermal relevant technologies, and leading scientists and engineers from a number of academic institutions across Texas.
The Texas energy sector has benefitted tremendously from a diversified energy portfolio that has included oil, natural gas, wind, solar, coal, and nuclear power. In addition to these resources, Texas is also fortunate to have a tremendous amount of undeveloped geothermal resources, which could be developed in the near term to decarbonize residential and industrial heating and cooling, as well as to produce reliable and secure baseload electricity.
The intellectual capital of the Texas Oil & Gas Industry, including skill sets, assets, methodologies, and technological expertise, coupled with its highly skilled workforce, will provide a pivotal advantage for fast industry growth and scale. In turn geothermal resource development will provide new opportunities for the Texas oil and gas sector, leveraging core competencies while developing a virtually inexhaustible clean energy resource in the state.

Paradigm shifting technology advancements within the oil and gas industry over the past decade, along with a significant increase in the number of oil and gas professionals engaged in geothermal ventures over the past years have enabled a new realm of possibilities to advance scalable geothermal concepts.
These advances, coupled with energy market incentives and a supportive legislative and regulatory framework will unleash the potential of geothermal energy in Texas, as well as position Texas as the global epicenter of next generation geothermal innovation. TXGEA will work with various stakeholders and supporters to identify policy challenges and solutions, with the goal of scaling geothermal to its full potential in the State of Texas.


A recently released foundational study, funded by the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, informs the mission of the TXGEA. The ‘Future of Geothermal in Texas’ study is a robust, cross-state, multi-institution initiative, a roadmap for future progress in geothermal in the Lone Star State.