Primary Design Engineer

EWI Recruitment; Lisboa; On-site; EUR 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

ewi Recruitment represents a specialist electrical engineering consultancy seeking an experienced Primary Design Engineer based in Portugal. The role covers primary electrical design for AIS and GIS substations and MV distribution serving data centres and industrial clients in the Scandinavian market.

You will work with PRIMTECH and Revit on primary design, coordinating with civil and structural teams for foundations and access requirements, and ensuring designs are safe, constructible and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in primary substation design.
• Proficiency with AIS and/or GIS substation layout design.
• Familiarity with ETAP, PRIMTECH and/or Revit for primary design.

Responsibilities

• Develop AIS, GIS and MV substation layouts including equipment arrangements and busbar configurations.
• Produce primary design deliverables such as general arrangements, layouts, sections and construction documentation.
• Ensure compliance with safety, insulation coordination and buildability requirements.
• Coordinate interfaces between primary plant, transformers, cables and MV distribution with other disciplines.
• Support specification, sizing and procurement of primary equipment per studies and requirements.
• Collaborate with civil, structural, MEP and suppliers to deliver integrated designs.

Skills

English proficiency

Portuguese language (bonus)

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

PRIMTECH

Revit

AutoCAD

ETAP

Job description

Overview

Our client who is a specialist electrical engineering consultancy, focused on data centres and high-voltage infrastructure projects, is looking for an experienced Primary Design Engineer.

The Primary Design Engineer is responsible for the primary electrical design of air-insulated (AIS) and gas-insulated (GIS) high-voltage substations and medium-voltage distribution systems serving data centre and industrial clients in the Scandinavian market.

The role focuses on substation physical layout design, primary equipment arrangement, busbar configuration, clearance management, and the integration of primary equipment within the overall substation design. The position works with PRIMTECH and/or Revit as primary design tools and coordinates closely with civil and structural engineering partners for foundations, buildings, and access requirements.

The Primary Design Engineer ensures that primary designs are technically sound, constructable, and aligned with client requirements, grid connection specifications, and applicable standards. The role also supports equipment interface design between HV/MV primary equipment and the secondary, protection, and automation systems.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and coordinate AIS, GIS, and MV substation layouts, including equipment arrangements, busbar configurations, clearances, switchgear rooms, and future expansion requirements.
• Produce primary design deliverables including general arrangements, layouts, sections, elevations, and construction documentation.
• Ensure compliance with safety, insulation coordination, redundancy, constructability, and project-specific design requirements.
• Coordinate interfaces between primary plant, GIS equipment, transformers, cable systems, MV distribution, protection, SCADA, and external engineering disciplines.
• Support specification, sizing, selection, and procurement of primary equipment in line with power system studies and project requirements.
• Work closely with civil, structural, MEP, procurement, and equipment suppliers to deliver integrated and buildable designs.
• Participate in design reviews, technical coordination, construction support, and preparation of as-built documentation for project handover.

Required Qualifications and Competencies:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in primary substation design.
• Experience with AIS and/or GIS substation layout design.
• Experience with HV equipment arrangement and clearance management.
• Experience coordinating with civil and structural disciplines.
• Experience in data center or industrial electrical infrastructure is a plus.
• Proficiency in PRIMTECH and/or Revit for primary substation design.
• Proficiency in AutoCAD for engineering drawings.
• Understanding of HV and MV primary equipment (transformers, switchgear, busbars).
• Knowledge of insulation coordination and safety clearance requirements.
• Working knowledge of ETAP for equipment sizing validation.
• Understanding of data center MV distribution and redundancy architectures.
• Knowledge of IEC standards for substation design.
• Familiarity with AIS and GIS substation configurations.
• Excellent verbal and written communication in English (Portuguese is considered a plus).
• EU citizenship preferred to facilitate site visits across Scandinavia.
• Based in Lisbon or Porto, Portugal.
• Strong organisational and multitasking capabilities.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Ability to coordinate across multiple engineering disciplines..