The Power Plant Project Development Specialist drives the technical scoping, engineering design integration, and site evaluation for large-scale power generation assets. This role focuses on technical feasibility, grid interconnection coordination, equipment selection, and regulatory environmental compliance to advance projects from concept to construction-ready state.
As the lead technical strategist for new generation projects, you will oversee the engineering and technical development of greenfield or brownfield power project developments. You are responsible for optimizing efficiency, defining technical plant boundaries, managing utility logistics, and ensuring strict alignment with grid codes and environmental standards.
Key Responsibilities
- Site Selection & Technical Feasibility: Evaluate physical sites for grid interconnection capacity, proximity to gas transmission pipelines, raw water sourcing logistics, and structural zoning suitability.
- Technology Selection: Collaborate with engineering teams to analyze heat balances and select heavy-duty gas turbines, Heat Recovery Steam Generators (HRSGs), and steam turbines to maximize plant flexibility and lower heat rates.
- Studies Oversight: Define clear scopes of work, technical deliverables, and QA/QC standards for external consultants delivering ambient air quality modeling, noise impact studies, etc.
- Grid Interconnection Engineering: Manage the RTO/ISO interconnection process, directing system impact studies, facilities studies, and technical compliance with transmission system reliability standards.
- Environmental & Permitting Compliance: Define technical parameters for air emission control systems (e.g., SCR, CO catalysts), water treatment systems, and noise mitigation to meet federal, state, and local regulatory criteria.
- Consultant Management: Direct specialized third-party engineering consultants, geotechnical firms, and environmental scientists to execute detailed site investigations, and specialized plant modeling.
- Owner's Engineer (OE) Liaison: Act as the primary technical point of contact for the Owner's Engineer, managing the translation of developer requirements into detailed engineering scopes, design reviews, and technical specifications.
- Operations & Maintenance (O&M) Service Provider Engagement: Lead the technical selection and onboarding of long-term O&M service providers during the late-stage development phase. Integrate O&M requirements into the plant's functional design criteria, establishing clear boundaries of responsibility between the EPC contractor and the operator. Facilitate the technical transition of performance guarantees, spare parts philosophies, and specialized tooling needs from OEMs to the O&M team.
- EPC Technical Scoping: Draft technical scopes of work, functional design criteria, and performance guarantees for Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) specifications.
Required Qualifications
- Education: Bachelor of Science or Master's degree in Engineering, Mechanical or Electrical Engineering.
- Experience: 8+ years of technical project development, plant design, or systems engineering experience specifically within utility-scale power plants.
- Consultant Oversight: Proven track record managing external Owner's Engineers, environmental consultants, and technical sub-contractors on large-scale infrastructure projects.
- Technical Skills: Deep knowledge of power-cycle thermodynamics, gas turbine combustion technologies, auxiliary plant systems, and ISO/RTO electrical interconnection processes.
- Regulatory Knowledge: Strong working familiarity with EPA New Source Review (NSR), Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permitting, and local environmental compliance frameworks.
- Site & Land Diligence:Coordinate technical diligence of land parcels, including title and survey review, easement and access requirements, site control constraints, environmental sensitivities, and development risks that could affect project layout, permitting, or constructability.
Preferred Qualifications
- Professional Engineer (PE) license in mechanical or electrical engineering.
- Direct project history navigating complex RTO/ISO queue reforms or fast-tracked interconnection processes.
- Professional network with major power generation equipment OEMs, EPC contractors, and top-tier national O&M service firms.
- Experience with
land development software tools. (i.e., Google Earth, Open Infrastructure Map, etc.) and power plant simulation and engineering software such as PSS/E, Thermoflow (GT PRO/GT MASTER) - Familiarity with emerging technologies such as carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS), hydrogen fuel blending, or hybrid energy storage systems.
