January 25, 2023

Sam Belcher, senior vice president, Operations, has informed the company that he has decided to retire, effective May 1.

“Sam’s strong leadership, commitment to continuous improvement and unwavering focus on safety at FirstEnergy has made our company stronger and our workforce safer,” said John Somerhalder, interim president and chief executive officer. “I thank Sam for his solid guidance and work over the past decade, which will have an immeasurable and lasting positive impact. We wish him all the best in his retirement.”

The company will evaluate internal talent and external candidates as we work to fill this role as soon as possible.

“I’m proud to have worked with such a talented group of people,” said Sam. “While I look forward to retirement, I will always appreciate the can-do attitude shared across our workforce – the dedication to each other and to serving our customers safely and reliably every hour of every day.”

An energy industry veteran with decades of leadership experience, Sam joined the company in December 2012 as senior vice president and chief operating officer of FENOC (FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Company). In March 2018, he became senior vice president and president of FirstEnergy Utilities and was named to his current position in August 2021.

Sam came to FirstEnergy from Constellation Energy Nuclear Group, where he was senior vice president, Site Operations. He also held the positions of site vice president and plant general manager at Constellation’s Nine Mile Point Nuclear Station. Before joining Constellation, Sam served as director of Fleet Operations at FENOC. He also held a number of operations leadership positions with Energy Northwest’s Columbia Generating Station and Entergy Nuclear’s River Bend and Arkansas Nuclear One.

A graduate of Arkansas Tech University, Sam earned a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering and is a licensed professional engineer. He also held a Senior Reactor Operator license for the River Bend Station in Louisiana.

Sam is a member of the Board of Directors for the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and serves on the Governance & Nominating Committee. He also serves as president of the Great Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America. In addition, Sam is a member of the Board of Directors for the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce.