Primary Electrical Engineer I Energy

AECOM; Auckland; On-site; NZD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

AECOM’s Transmission & Distribution team in New Zealand seeks an emerging professional as a Primary Electrical Engineer based in Auckland. You will contribute to concept and detailed design for primary and substation projects, with mentoring from senior leaders, and exposure to diverse NZ and regional clients.

The role emphasises safety, quality, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. You will develop skills across design packages, meet client expectations, and work within an established team to

Qualifications

• 3+ years’ experience in NZ T&D market
• Experience with electrical equipment including transformers, switchgear, circuit breakers, isolators, and reactive plant
• Exposure to substation layout design, insulation coordination, and earthing systems (NZ standards e.g., AS/NZS)
• Ability to work across several projects with strong time management and organisation
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills
• Ideally working towards Chartered Engineer status or interest to pursue it

Responsibilities

• Support and complete concept, detailed and related design work packages for primary systems and substation projects
• Create and review single line drawings, substation layouts, MV/HV cable designs
• Collaborate with technical leaders to submit work packages for technical verification
• Coordinate with team leaders, project managers, clients and project team members to deliver designs on time and within scope
• Engage with multidisciplinary teams including protection, control, civil, and secondary systems engineers
• Provide input to client discussions and help deliver drawings and project deliverables
• Ensure adherence to safety, quality and environmental standards throughout the lifecycle of projects

Skills

Primary Electrical Engineer

Electrical engineering

Power systems

Substation design

Stakeholder engagement

Education

Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, power systems or related discipline

Job description

AECOM’s Energy practice provides a wide range of services from consulting and engineering design to energy engineering, energy procurement and construction (EPC) for power, energy efficiency, and renewable energy clients. Our understanding of the big picture – and the interconnection between generation, distribution, storage, and the demand side of the meter – allows us to deliver holistic strategies that improve and modernise next generation energy infrastructure. We connect knowledge and experience across our global framework to bring together a unique combination of engineers, planners, scientists, and project managers who advance cleaner, secure, and more sustainable energy solutions.

Everyone belongs at AECOM

We’re committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging - because great ideas come from diverse perspectives. AECOM is proud to be a Fortune 500 Most Admired Company, a WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality, #Work180 Equitable Workplace Awards 2025 Winner and an AWEI Bronze Tier LGBTQ+ Inclusive Employer.

Job Description

"Energy is an exciting place to be working as we continue to see changes in the way we generate, transmit and use electricity across all our markets as we work to decarbonise the industry." – Mark Lampard, Sector Director - Transmission & Distribution

Join AECOM’s Transmission & Distribution (T&D) team in New Zealand (NZ) and build your Primary Electrical Engineering career in this role with across a range of varied projects and career development opportunities.

You will be working in an established team, supporting the concept and detailed design of Primary Engineering related projects and work packages, including substation layout and design. You will also have significant mentoring and develop opportunities with the support provided by the other senior and technical leaders in this team. You will be able to build and grow your electrical and primary engineering skills through the variety of transmission and distribution clients you will be working with (in NZ, Australia and potentially globally) and through the different scope and scale of projects.

This is your opportunity to join a global multidiscipline engineering firm, with local NZ expertise, enabling your career to develop and to contribute to the delivery of critical and major energy infrastructure.

How you’ll make a difference:

• Support and complete concept detailed and related design work packages for primary systems and substation related projects within an established team across low, medium and high voltage projects.
• Complete design and engineering tasks including single line drawings, substation layouts, MV and HV cable designs.
• Work with AECOM technical leaders, to submit work packages in a timely manner for technical verification working within AECOM’s technical standards and processes.
• Liaising with team leaders, project managers, clientsand project team members to deliver designs within allocated time, budget and required scope.
• Coordinate and collaborate with multidisciplinary teams including protection, control, civil, and secondary systems engineers as required.
• Provide input and support to client and stakeholder discussions as required, helping to complete drawings, designs and project deliverables.
• Ensure adherence to safety, quality, and environmental standards throughout the project lifecycle.
• Participate in design reviews, risk assessments, and value engineering initiatives.

This role is based in AECOM’s Auckland office with the main Primary and Substation team. Applications may be considered from the right candidate outside of this region.

Qualifications

To be successful in this role, you will be an emerging professional Primary Electrical Engineer. This role may suit applicant from a broad range of backgrounds in the electrical or primary engineering areas (this role won’t suit graduate level applicants). This experience could include working in the contractor, energy facilities, industrial, transmission or distribution sectors, with your experience being across design, engineering, maintenance or construction related. You will be known for your ability to work collaboratively with in a team, enjoy working on multiple projects and deadlines, with a project and client-first focus.

The following qualifications and experience are highly desired. However, if you don’t tick all the boxes, you could still be a fit for this role.

The qualities that help you thrive:

• Expose to the primary and substation design concepts and industry, preferably within the NZ T&D market with 3+ years’ experience.
• An understanding of electrical equipment including transformers, switchgear, circuit breakers, isolators, and reactive plant – which could be across low, medium or high voltage projects.
• Exposure to substation layout design, insulation coordination, and earthing systems including the relevant NZ standards (e.g., AS/NZS) and industry best practices.
• An ability to work across several different projects, with excellent time management and organisation abilities.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Ideally working towards Chartered Engineer status (or an interest to do so), supported by a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, power systems or related discipline.

Additional Information

Ready to push the limits of what’s possible?

We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds, including those with disabilities, additional health or mental health needs, and/or neurodiverse conditions. If you require any adjustments during the hiring process, please let us know.

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

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