The Wind Project Engineer is responsible for wind projects throughout the entire project life cycle, including development, construction, and operations. This role serves as the primary technical point of contact for assigned projects and maintains overall ownership of engineering and technical decisions while coordinating with internal and external subject matter experts.
The successful candidate will bring strong experience in the design, engineering, and analysis of wind projects, along with a solid understanding of the systems, architectures, and components required to develop and operate utility-scale wind facilities.
The position is in Louisville, CO, and may include up to 25% travel to project locations and partner offices.
Key Responsibilities
Project Development:
- Perform technical due diligence reviews for M&A projects and portfolios.
- Provide constructability guidance and support to the prospecting team.
- Lead preliminary Balance of Plant (BOP) design, including:
- Site civil
- Turbine foundations
- Collection systems
- Substations
- Gen-tie infrastructure
- Coordinate geotechnical investigations.
- Support micrositing activities, including:
- Turbine locations
- Collection system routing
- Road routing
- Gen-tie routing
- Substation and switchyard siting
- Prepare engineering inputs required for permitting activities.
- Support equipment evaluations and technology selection.
Procurement & Contract Management
- Develop Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for:
- BOP contractors
- Switchyard contractors
- Turbine suppliers
- Lead the RFP evaluation process, including bid comparisons and award recommendations.
- Support negotiation of:
- Balance of Plant (BOP) contracts
- Turbine Supply Agreements (TSA)
- Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contracts
Project Execution & Construction Support
- Develop project scope of work documents and design standards.
- Evaluate and select engineering service providers.
- Coordinate engineering consultants to develop construction drawings and supporting documentation.
- Review and comment on design deliverables from consultants and contractors.
- Perform design reviews for BOP and switchyard systems.
- Respond to contractor Requests for Information (RFIs).
- Evaluate and review contractor change order requests.
- Support project managers during construction by providing technical oversight and contractor coordination.
- Conduct QA/QC field inspections and develop punch lists.
- Perform Job Safety Assessments and Safety Walks to identify and mitigate job-site hazards.
- Review commissioning reports and evaluate system performance.
- Support budget development and provide key financial inputs.
- Help ensure projects are delivered safely, with high quality, on or under budget, and on or ahead of schedule.
Engineering Support
- Optimize designs to improve reliability and reduce project costs.
- Collaborate with Operations and Maintenance teams to troubleshoot existing systems.
- Develop repair strategies and remediation plans when necessary.
Growth & Leadership
- Improve processes that support the execution of safe, high-quality, and high-performing projects.
- Mentor team members on industry trends, emerging technologies, best practices, and safety standards.
- Contribute to AES growth initiatives, process improvement efforts, and strategic planning activities.
Skills and Qualifications
Primary Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical discipline.
- 1-3 years of professional experience in wind project design, development, construction, or analysis.
- Experience with the design, construction, and operation of:
- MV collection systems (underground and overhead)
- Substations
- Gen-tie systems
- Interconnection switchyards
- Site civil infrastructure
- Turbine foundations
- Geotechnical systems
- Strong proficiency with:
- AutoCAD
- GIS software
- Microsoft Excel
2Plus2 Qualifications
- 5+ years of professional experience in wind project design, development, construction, or analysis.
- 2+ years of experience with energy storage systems and/or PV system design and modeling.
- Master's degree in Engineering or related field.
- EIT or PE certification.
- Experience with AutoCAD, ArcGIS, Matlab, ETAP, PSS/E and other advanced modeling tools
- Substation and high-voltage design experience.
- OSHA 10-hour certification or equivalent construction safety training.
