Operations Engineering Lead

Company Overview: MN8 Energy is one of the largest independent solar energy and energy storage owner-operators in the U.S., serving enterprise customers with clean energy and complementary solutions, such as battery storage and EV Charging, to enable an electrified, decarbonized world. Originally founded inside of Goldman Sachs in 2017, our fleet has grown to nearly 3-gigawatts of solar, including 850 projects across 27 states, and over 270 megawatts of battery storage projects, with each project tailored to achieve the bold decarbonization targets and goals of our more than 200 blue-chip customers. MN8 is headquartered in New York with offices in Boca Raton, Florida and Madrid.

About the Position:

The Operations Engineers Lead will work in a team environment, on a variety of engineering projects related to solar and/or solar plus storage C&I, utility scale plants and electrical power system troubleshooting and improvement. The Operations Engineer will manage operating improvement initiatives, design retrofit projects, reliability improvement projects, troubleshooting, root cause analysis, causal analysis and major repairs in coordination with on and offsite support. The primary responsibilities for this position include the remediation and reliability improvement of existing operating assets and balance of plant equipment with opportunity for cross-over support of solar and battery storage assets supporting Asset management and O&M. The day-to-day activities have a wide degree of variety involving multiple operating projects simultaneously

As the Operations Engineering Lead, you will:

• Planning, coordination and supervising on-site and off-site activities related to retrofit, design, scope definition and execute repairs/installs of the company’s energy projects.
• Communication and coordination with internal and external stakeholders with O&M, Asset Management, Owners Engineers, Internal Subject matter experts.
• Lead tasks associated with onboarding and validation of documents for Operations-O&M, Asset Management (AM) related engineering activities.
• Develop recommended guidelines, specifications and schedules for routine services, maintenance and troubleshooting/repair of equipment at PV and storage plants.
• Manage complex tasks and ticketing system for projects assigned for Operations and maintenance team
• Be the Subject matter expert for delegation, management and resolution of plant failures/critical equipment downtime by leading calls with utilities, O&M technicians, Engineer of records etc.
• Based on guidance from AM, O&M and Performance teams, evaluate equipment performance and behavior, report and recommend design or operational modifications. Make clear concise recommendations taking considerations of performance, timing, capital expenditures, and budgeting.
• Lead the root cause analysis and remediation plans for defective equipment, enhance the design of problematic parts to improve performance and reliability.
• Evaluate solar asset end-of-life extension and repower opportunities.
• Maintain and grow the solar and solar plus storage asset reliability program.
• Establish and manage relationships with service providers/ Owner’s Engineer to evaluate and supervise repair and or enhancement work stream. Ensure relevant standards are implemented for the successful return to service of repaired units in accordance with design and supplier standards.
• Plan, prepare, and instruct training programs as required to share field engineering and/or product knowledge with operations staff.
• Contribute to the creation and regular updating of engineering specifications leveraging lessons learned from operating plants.
• Provide subject matter expertise in driving the solution for any plant operations issues reported by internal team.
• Conduct work actions in compliance with industry standards for safety, quality, and environmental protection. Utilize technical expertise to enhance MN8 culture of safety.
• Research and analyze design proposals, specifications, and manuals to determine feasibility of design or application.

Our Ideal candidate will have:

• At least 5 years of experience in Solar Engineering with excellent understanding of solar project technical characteristics. Storage Engineering is beneficial and a plus.
• Experience in Design and/or Operations of other renewable energy projects preferred.
• Experience in conducting site visits and evaluating technical issues in the field preferred.
• Strong experience in reviewing Commissioning reports, FAT reports, diagnostics analysis.
• Engineering BSc Degree required in Electrical Engineering; Masters preferred.
• Expert knowledge of renewable energy engineering documents.
• Working knowledge of key renewable energy document types: project agreements and permits.
• Proficient in: AutoCAD, PVsyst, PlantPredict, Helioscope, Excel, Word, Smartsheet, Salesforce.
• Demonstrated experience preparing or managing outside consultants in preparation of load flow and other grid studies to determine feasibility on interconnection cost economics.
• National Electric code (NEC) knowledge preferred.
• Familiar with FERC, ISO rules and standards preferred.
• Strong background in Electrical power systems engineering, established experienced work background in electrical maintenance, including DC Systems, AC systems, MV and HV collector systems and network and communications monitoring
• Established record of experience with operations of SCADA systems, controls narrative and DAS/control systems.
• Strong experience in relay operations, settings and event analysis
• Strong experience with transformers failure, root cause analysis and MV cable failures.
• Very organized and able to multitask effectively.
• Good communicator both written and verbal skill.
• Demonstrated ability to problem solve and determination to complete difficult projects.
• Demonstrated ability to improve processes and create efficiencies.
• Highly developed sense of professional ethics.
• Ability to work both on a team as well as independently.
• Ability to communicate effectively with tact and diplomacy.
• Ability to interface effectively with cross functional employee group of all levels and competencies.
• Commitment to quality.

How we set you up for success:

At MN8, we cultivate a culture of equity, through transparency and accessibility, where everyone thrives. We know our most valuable resource is our people. That’s why we offer the following benefits. By investing in you, we know we are investing in the clean energy of tomorrow.

• Medical/Dental/Vision Insurance beginning the 1st of the month following your date of hire
• Paid Time Off
• Paid holidays and floating holidays
• 401(k) with competitive employer match
• Hybrid work schedule including a “work from anywhere” allocation
• Parental leave

MN8 Energy is an Equal Opportunity Employer and fully subscribes to the principles of Equal Employment Opportunity to ensure that all applicants and employees are considered for hire, promotion, and job status without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, marital or familial status.