Senior High Voltage Development Engineer

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AES Clean Energy is seeking a Senior High Voltage Development Engineer to join our High Voltage Development Engineering team supporting the West region, including Hawaii. This role focuses on the development of High Voltage Facilities – substations and generation-tie lines – for PV, BESS, and Wind projects. You will be part of a core group of resourceful, regionally dedicated engineers driving innovation across large-scale renewable energy programs.

The High Voltage Development team leads due diligence and design throughout all stages of project development – early concept through late-stage refinement – delivering execution-ready facilities that are safe, de-risked, technically compliant, and commercially viable.

The Senior High Voltage Development Engineer will support the development of 35 kV to 500 kV substation and transmission facilities across greenfield, brownfield, and M&A project pipelines. They will collaborate closely with diverse internal stakeholders (technical teams, commercial, estimating, land, and others) and manage external engineering consultants, utility partners, and ISOs.

The ideal candidate is:

- Proactive and communicative, able to coordinate effectively across disciplines.

- Organized and technically strong, with the ability to operate in evolving or ambiguous technical landscapes.

- Skilled at prioritizing competing tasks and providing sound technical judgment across substation, gen‑tie, power system, and interconnection engineering.

- Comfortable building and maintaining relationships with internal teams, external consultants, utilities, and other partners.

This position is an excellent opportunity for an engineer who not only excels in technical high-voltage engineering but also values building relationships and partners across disciplines to deliver high‑quality renewable energy facilities.

Principal Duties andResponsibilities:

- Lead early‑stage and conceptual pre‑construction engineering for high‑voltage collector substations and generation tie‑lines (35 kV–500 kV) across Solar, Wind, and BESS projects, including de‑risking activities and feasibility assessments.

- Collaborate closely with cross‑functional teams – real estate, permitting, interconnection, commercial, PV/BESS/Wind engineering, pre‑construction, construction, commissioning, and O&M – to deliver safe, compliant, and technically sound project designs.

- Interpret and synthesize complex technical inputs from interconnection studies, ISO/utility requirements, commercial constraints, and project‑specific needs to develop well‑informed conceptual designs in‑house.

- Develop scopes of work and manage external consultants producing 30% design packages, ensuring alignment with AES engineering standards, ISO/utility requirements, PPA specifications, and project objectives.

- Lead multidisciplinary design reviews and guide consultants in resolving advanced challenges related to power flow, protection and control, metering, and physical substation or transmission design.

- Support high‑voltage cost estimating for greenfield, brownfield, and M&A projects, including BOM creation, risk identification, and value‑engineering opportunities.

- Build and maintain strong working relationships with specialized high‑voltage consulting firms, internal stakeholders, and technical partners to ensure high‑quality engineering outcomes.

- Coordinate directly with Western interconnection providers and utilities to develop collector substation designs and incorporate requirements for new switchyards and transmission provider infrastructure.

- Develop contractual exhibits, technical specifications, and bid packages to support EPC procurement and execution.

- Evaluate high‑voltage EPC bid designs for compliance with interconnection agreements, applicable reliability standards, and AES engineering criteria, identifying gaps and recommending corrective actions.

- Ensure smooth project handoff to the High Voltage Execution Engineer, transferring technical knowledge and design intent to position execution teams for success.

- Contribute to team growth and leadership, supporting continuous improvement and mentoring junior engineers as opportunities arise.

- Conduct site visits for interconnection evaluations, gen‑tie routing, and other field needs, with travel approximately 25%.

Minimum Qualifications

- B.S. Electrical Engineering with emphasis on Power Systems.

- 5+ years of High Voltage design experience (physical, P&C, gen-ties, studies, or a combination)

- Strong understanding of project management best practices.

- Excellent communication skills with the ability to lead technical discussions among EORs, EPCs, utilities, ISOs, and internal teams.

- Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects.

- Ability to bridge technical and non‑technical perspectives in a fast‑paced environment.

Desired Skills and Experience

- Professional Engineer (PE) licensure.

- PMP Certificate

- Proficiency in AutoCAD or similar design tools.

- Experience with ETAP or comparable power system modeling software.

- Knowledge of relay and SCADA controls and system architecture.

- Experience with PLS‑CADD.

- Demonstrated microgrid or advanced power systems experience.

- Experience training and mentoring junior engineers.

AES is an Equal Opportunity Employer who is committed to building strength and delivering long-term sustainability through diversity and inclusion. Respecting all backgrounds, differences and perspectives enables us to improve the lives of our people, customers, suppliers, contractors, and the communities in which we live and work. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and/or expression, race, national origin, ethnicity, age, religion, marital status, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law. E-Verify Notice: AES will provide the Social Security Administration (SSA) and if necessary, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with information from each new employee's I-9 to confirm work authorization.The expected salary for this position, at commencement of employment, is between $113,000 and $141,525/Annual; however, base pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The total compensation package for this position may also include other elements such as annual bonus, in addition to a full range of medical, dental, vision, life, financial, and/or other benefits (including 401(k) eligibility and various paid time off benefits, such as vacation, sick time, and parental leave), dependent on the position offered. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if a candidate receives an offer of employment. If hired, employee will be in an “at-will position” and the Company reserves the right to modify base salary (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, Company or individual department/team performance, and market factors.