Principal Civil Engineer – Renewables & Transmission & Distribution

Aecom; Birmingham; Hybrid; GBP 75,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Job summary

AECOM is seeking a Principal Civil Engineer to support energy projects across the UK and Ireland, leading civil design across wind, solar, hydro, and grid infrastructure. The role covers feasibility through construction supervision within a flexible hybrid model.

You’ll drive technical excellence, coordinate multi-disciplinary teams, and mentor junior staff while engaging with utility providers and developers. Strong UK standards knowledge is essential.

Qualifications

• BEng (Hons) in Civil Engineering is required to be eligible for the role.
• Chartered status or active pursuit of chartership with a recognised Institution is required.
• Experience delivering complex multi-disciplinary projects in Energy Transition is highly desirable.
• Experience in UK Transmission & Distribution projects (11KV-400KV) is highly desirable.
• The role is technical; high competency in civil or structural design is essential.
• Strong report writing and organisational skills are key to the role.
• Familiarity with NGTS or National Grid CDAE status is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Act as lead verifier on reports including feasibility studies and design reports.
• Liaise with clients, manage project work day-to-day, and ensure delivery within timescales and budgets.
• Coordinate multi-disciplinary design teams.
• Lead and manage civil infrastructure design including roads, drainage, external works.
• Prepare and review calculations, detailed design drawings, and specifications to UK standards.
• Conduct site inspections and respond to technical queries.
• Produce high-quality feasibility, inspection, and design reports.
• Mentor and guide junior staff.

Skills

Energy transition projects

Transmission & Distribution

Civil/Structural design

Technical verification

Client liaison

Report writing

Organisational skills

NGTS familiarity

Education

BEng (Hons) in Civil Engineering

Chartered status or working towards chartership (IStructE or equivalent)

Job description

Job Description

Start here. Grow here.

We are looking for an experienced Principal Civil Engineer to support the continued expansion of energy team and help shape the future of sustainable infrastructure. Successful candidates will be deployed to support projects across both our Renewables & Transmission and Distribution teams.

This position can be based in our growing offices in Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness, London - Aldgate Tower, Perth, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Belfast and Dublin and whilst benefiting from our flexible hybrid working model

You should be passionate about engineering excellence and want to work on cutting‑edge energy projects across the UK, Ireland, Europe and further afield.

What can we offer?

As a Principal Civil Engineer, you’ll play a key technical role across a diverse portfolio of energy projects, including:

• Onshore wind
• Solar PV
• Hydroelectric (run‑off river and pumped storage)
• Grid infrastructure – Substation and Overhead Line
• Battery Energy Storage System (BESS)

You will be involved from feasibility through to detailed design and construction supervision, working with both major energy utility providers and private developers.

What You’ll Do:

As a Principal Civil Engineer, you will:

• Act as lead verifier on reports including technical feasibility studies and design reports.
• Liaise with clients, manage project work on a day‑to‑day basis and ensure that the work is delivered within the agreed timescale and budgets.
• Coordinate multi-disciplinary design teams
• Lead and manage the design of civil infrastructure including roads, drainage, civil structural infrastructure and external works.
• Prepare and review calculations, detailed design drawings and specifications ensuring compliance with UK standards (BS EN codes, Eurocodes, CDM Regulations).
• Conduct site inspections and respond to technical queries
• Produce high‑quality reports (feasibility studies, inspection reports, design documentation)
• Mentor and guide junior staff

This role will present you with a fantastic opportunity to develop your technical and project management skills through your project work, with great prospects for career progression as the team continues to grow.

And let's not forget about the perks at AECOM. You'll enjoy a range of core and personalised benefits designed to support your future and well‑being, customised to fit your lifestyle. Take advantage of career development opportunities, our flexible hybrid working model to ensure a work‑life balance that suits your lifestyle, technical practice networks, AECOM University, and volunteering days.

Qualifications

Ready to push the limits of what’s possible?

Here’s what we’re looking for:

• BEng (Hons) degree in Civil Engineering
• Chartered status or actively working towards chartership with the Institution of Civil Engineers or other relevant Institution.
• Experience in delivering complex multi‑disciplinary projects for the Energy Transition industry is highly desirable.
• Experience within UK Transmission & Distribution projects (11KV - 400KV) is highly desirable.
• This role is a technical role, and you will be expected to demonstrate a high degree of technical competency in the design of civil or structural elements.
• In addition to engineering skills, report writing and organisational skills will be key to the role.
• Familiarity with National Grid Technical Specifications (NGTS) or National Grid CDAE status will be an added Advantage.

Additional Information

At AECOM, we are committed to maintaining a secure and trustworthy recruitment process and take any fraudulent hiring activity seriously. To support this commitment, all newly hired employees are required to attend an in‑person Day 1 onboarding at an AECOM office location as a condition of employment.

About AECOM

AECOM is the world’s trusted infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle – from advisory, planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. On projects spanning transportation, buildings, water, new energy and the environment, our public‑ and private‑sector clients trust us to solve their most complex challenges. Our teams are driven by a common purpose to deliver a better world through our unrivaled technical and digital expertise, a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion, and a commitment to environmental, social and governance priorities. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm and its Professional Services business had revenue of $16.1 billion in fiscal year 2025. See how we are delivering sustainable legacies for generations to come at aecom.com and @AECOM.

Freedom to Grow in a World of Opportunity

You will have the flexibility you need to do your best work with hybrid work options. Whether you’re working from an AECOM office, remote location or at a client site, you will be working in a dynamic environment where your integrity, entrepreneurial spirit and pioneering mindset are championed.

You will help us foster a safe and respectful workplace, where we invite everyone to bring their whole selves to work using their unique talents, backgrounds and expertise to create transformational outcomes for our clients.

AECOM provides a wide array of compensation, benefits and well‑being programs to meet the diverse needs of our employees and their families. We’re the world’s trusted global infrastructure firm, and we’re in this together – your growth and success are ours too.

Join us, and you’ll get all the benefits of being a part of a global, publicly traded firm – access to industry‑leading technology and thinking and transformational work with big impact and work flexibility. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we believe in each person’s potential, and we’ll help you reach yours.

We are a Disability Confident Employer and will offer an interview to applicants who have a disability or long‑term condition, who meet the minimum/essential criteria for the role. Please let us know using this email address [e-mail] if you would like to apply through the Disability Confident Interview Scheme.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.