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R.F. Hemphill graduated Magna Cum Laude from Yale University and earned an MA from UCLA
and an MBA from George Washington University. He served as an airborne infantry officer in
the US Army in Vietnam, and in the Special Forces.
For much of his career, He was at AES, a highly regarded global electric power generation and
distribution company, where he served as Executive Vice President and Chief of Staff to the
CEO. Hemphill was one of the executives who began the company in 1981, growing it from a six
person start up to almost $18 billion in revenue in 2013. AES owns and operates 38,000 Mega
Watts of power plants in 21 countries around the globe, and is publicly listed on the NYSE.
Recently, Hemphill was the founder and CEO of AES Solar Power Ltd from its inception in 2008
until his retirement in December 2013. AES Solar is a leading developer, owner and operator
of utility-scale photovoltaic solar plants connected to the electric power grid. Under Bob’s
leadership, the company designed, permitted and constructed fifty-one solar plants, converting
sunlight into electricity in seven countries. He has also been a senior policy official at the U.S.
Department of Energy and Deputy Manager of Power at the Tennessee Valley Authority.
His interests include geraniums, unsuccessful participation in Final Four pools, sporadic
exercise, competitive duck cooking and tribal art.