Commissioning Project Manager, BESS

SOLV Energy, Inc.; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 111,000 - 138,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision insurance

401(k) plan

Paid time off

Job summary

SOLV Energy is seeking a Commissioning Project Manager for HV substation and battery energy storage projects. You will lead commissioning activities from planning through turnover, coordinating field teams, OEMs, and utilities to ensure safe, on-time delivery across multiple concurrent projects.

The role requires strong project management, technical coordination, and stakeholder communication, with a hybrid work arrangement and onsite project presence.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of progressive experience in commissioning, startup, testing, construction, operations, or project delivery for utility-scale electrical facilities, including HV substations or BESS.
• Experience coordinating multiple concurrent projects or complex workstreams and leading cross-functional field teams without direct reporting relationships.
• Ability to read and interpret contracts, scopes of work, specifications, IFC drawings, electrical one-lines, schematics, and interconnection requirements.
• Project management capability in scope, schedule, resource, risk, stakeholder, cost, change, issue, and document management.

Responsibilities

• Own the assigned HV or BESS commissioning scope across typically 2-3 concurrent projects, including deliverables, milestones, schedule, resources, risks, constraints, documentation, and turnover.
• Develop and maintain a commissioning execution plan, milestone register, responsibility assignments, readiness criteria, and integrated schedule activities.
• Translate contract requirements and standards into an executable commissioning scope and work plan.
• Lead readiness reviews and ensure prerequisites are complete before testing or energization proceeds.
• Coordinate field commissioning teams, OEM advisors, third-party testers, and subcontractors; manage witness requirements.
• Ensure safe, compliant energization plans and turnovers to operations.

Skills

Project management

Scheduling

Stakeholder management

Leadership

Technical coordination

Driving/Access requirements

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering or related

Tools

Microsoft Office

Primavera P6

Job description

Job Description Summary:

The Commissioning Project Manager - HV/BESS is accountable for planning, managing, and delivering the complete commissioning scope for assigned high-voltage substation or battery energy storage projects, typically across two to three concurrent projects. The role functions as the project manager for the assigned technical scope from early planning and readiness through energization, testing, acceptance, substantial completion, and turnover. This position owns scope, schedule, resource planning, cost awareness, risk, technical coordination, stakeholder alignment, documentation, and issue resolution. The Commissioning Project Manager exercises independent judgment within the assigned scope and serves as the primary commissioning point of contact for project teams, customers, utilities, OEMs, and commissioning partners. This role is hybrid, with onsite presence required at job sites and partial remote work. Specific location details and expectations will be discussed during the interview process.

Job Description:

*This job description reflects management's assignment of essential functions; it does not prescribe or restrict the tasks that may be assigned.

Position Responsibilities and Duties:

• Own the assigned HV or BESS commissioning scope across typically 2-3 concurrent projects, including deliverables, milestones, schedule, resources, risks, constraints, documentation, and turnover.
• Develop and maintain a project-specific commissioning execution plan, milestone and deliverables register, responsibility assignments, readiness criteria, integrated schedule activities, and resource forecast.
• Translate contract requirements, technical specifications, interconnection requirements, permit conditions, OEM requirements, and company standards into an executable commissioning scope and work plan.
• Establish priorities and make day-to-day project decisions within the assigned scope; promptly elevate safety, contractual, technical, schedule, cost, or resource issues that require leadership action.
• Track progress, productivity, forecasted completion, constraints, and corrective actions; provide accurate daily and weekly reporting to commissioning and project leadership.
• Technical and Field Execution Review applicable IFC drawings, one-line and three-line diagrams, equipment data, control narratives, relay and protection documentation, sequence-of-operations documents, OEM manuals, test requirements, and interconnection deliverables.
• Coordinate the development, technical review, approval, and field implementation of commissioning plans, procedures, test forms, energization prerequisites, and acceptance criteria with Commissioning Engineering and subject-matter experts.
• Lead readiness reviews and verify that construction, quality, engineering, documentation, communications, controls, equipment, staffing, and safety prerequisites are complete before testing or energization proceeds.
• Manage execution of pre-commissioning, cold, warm, and hot commissioning activities applicable to the assigned scope, including functional, protection and control, communications, synchronization, utility capability, performance, and acceptance testing.
• Direct and coordinate field commissioning teams, technicians, OEM technical advisors, third-party testing providers, subcontractors, and other specialists; confirm responsibilities, sequencing, access, and witness requirements.
• Evaluate technical issues, test failures, deficiencies, and nonconformances; lead troubleshooting, assign corrective actions, confirm retesting, and manage closure without compromising safety or quality.
• For HV assignments, coordinate substation apparatus, protection and control, SCADA/communications, station service, metering, utility, energization, and operational turnover interfaces.
• For BESS assignments, coordinate battery enclosures, inverters/PCS, transformers, controls, EMS/PPC/SCADA, fire and life-safety interfaces, OEM requirements, functional testing, and performance or capacity testing interfaces.

Schedule, Cost, Risk, and Stakeholder Management

• Develop and manage detailed commissioning activities within the integrated P6 schedule; maintain logic, durations, sequencing, constraints, and forecast dates with project controls and execution teams.
• Develop and maintain the commissioning resource plan and forecast for the assigned scope; coordinate labor, equipment, test sets, specialty services, OEM support, utility support, and third-party providers.
• Monitor commitments, hours, third-party costs, and potential change impacts within the assigned scope; identify variances and support forecasts, change management, and recovery planning.
• Lead commissioning coordination meetings and daily plan-of-day meetings during active execution; document decisions, constraints, owners, and due dates.
• Coordinate with owners, utilities, ISOs/RTOs as applicable, OEMs, engineering, construction, quality, project management, operations, SCADA/controls, safety, and other affected parties while protecting contractual witness and notice requirements.

Safety, Energization, and Operational Control

• Lead by example and stop work when conditions are unsafe, requirements are not met, or the system is not ready for the planned activity.
• Coordinate energization plans, switching plans and procedures, LOTO, tagging, permit-to-work, red-rope, grounding, and energized-work requirements with authorized personnel and responsible stakeholders.
• Verify roles, boundaries, approvals, communication protocols, care/custody/control requirements, and operational authority before energization or system turnover.
• Ensure commissioning activities comply with company procedures, project requirements, NFPA 70E, applicable codes and standards, environmental requirements, and site-specific safety plans.

Documentation, Turnover, and Continuous Improvement

• Ensure complete, accurate, and timely daily reports, test records, issue logs, deficiency and punch lists, redlines, approvals, turnover packages, training records, and commissioning closeout documentation.
• Support milestone documentation for mechanical completion, energization, substantial completion, commercial operation, and final completion, as applicable to the assigned scope.
• Lead organized turnover to the owner and Operations and Maintenance teams, including system status, open items, warranties, procedures, training, and operational documentation.
• Capture lessons learned and improve commissioning templates, work methods, estimating assumptions, schedules, readiness gates, and standards.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong working knowledge of utility‑scale HV substation or BESS systems and their commissioning sequence, interfaces, risks, and acceptance requirements.
• Ability to read and interpret contracts, scopes of work, specifications, IFC drawings, electrical one-lines, schematics, control narratives, relay and protection documents, OEM manuals, and interconnection requirements.
• Knowledge of HV and MV electrical systems, switching and grounding concepts, LOTO and energized‑work controls, protection and control, SCADA/communications, and electrical test methods.
• For BESS assignments, knowledge of PCS/inverters, batteries, transformers, EMS/PPC/SCADA controls, communications, auxiliary systems, fire and life-safety interfaces, and OEM commissioning requirements.
• Working knowledge of applicable NEC, NFPA 70E, NETA, IEEE, NERC, utility, ISO/RTO, and manufacturer requirements.
• Project management capability in scope, schedule, resource, risk, stakeholder, cost, change, issue, and document management.
• Ability to lead technical teams through complex, time‑sensitive work and communicate clearly with field personnel, customers, utilities, executives, and technical specialists.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and experience with scheduling, document‑control, and project‑management systems; P6 experience is strongly preferred.

Safety

• Demonstrates visible safety leadership and reinforces that safe execution takes priority over schedule or production pressure.
• Understands and applies site operating procedures, electrical safe‑work practices, PPE requirements, job hazard analysis, LOTO, switching, grounding, and permit‑to‑work requirements.
• Intervenes in at‑risk conditions or behaviors, verifies corrective actions, and supports a learning‑focused safety culture.

Physical Demands and Environmental Conditions

• Frequent travel and extended project‑site assignments are expected based on project phase and portfolio needs.
• Work may occur outdoors in variable weather, around construction equipment, and near energized medium- and high-voltage systems.
• Requires the ability to walk active project sites, climb ladders or stairs, access equipment areas, bend or crouch, and lift or carry up to 50 pounds with or without reasonable accommodation.
• Must be able to wear required PPE and work varied hours, including early mornings, nights, weekends, or outage windows when project activities require.

Minimum Skills or Experience Requirements

• Minimum 5 years of progressive experience in commissioning, startup, testing, construction, operations, or project delivery for utility‑scale electrical facilities, including substantial experience with HV substations or BESS.
• Demonstrated ownership of a technical project scope, including schedule, resources, stakeholders, risk, issue resolution, documentation, and delivery commitments.
• Experience coordinating multiple concurrent projects or complex workstreams and leading cross‑functional field teams without relying on direct reporting relationships.
• Strong problem‑solving, planning, organization, negotiation, written communication, and stakeholder‑management skills.
• Valid driver’s license and ability to satisfy project access requirements.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, construction management, project management, or related discipline; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
• Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified Construction Manager, NETA certification, electrical license, or other relevant technical credentials.
• Experience with EPC contracts, utility interconnection, owner or utility witness testing, commercial milestones, and project change management.
• Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. without requiring employer sponsorship now or in the future.

Benefits

Employees (and their families) are eligible for medical, dental, vision, basic life and disability insurance. Employees can enroll in our company’s 401(k) plan and are provided vacation, sick and holiday pay.

Compensation Range

$110,632.00 - $138,290.00

Pay Rate Type

Salary

SOLV Energy Is an Equal Opportunity Employer

At SOLV Energy we celebrate the power of our differences. We are committed to building diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplaces that improve our communities. SOLV Energy prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind against an employee or applicant based on race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, or ethnicity, mental or physical disability, veteran status, parental status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Recruiter Policy

We require all third‑party recruiters to communicate exclusively with our internal talent acquisition team. SOLV Energy does not accept unsolicited candidate introductions, referrals or resumes from third‑party recruiters or staffing agencies. SOLV Energy will not pay a placement fee to any third‑party recruiter or agency that has not coordinated their recruiting activity with the appropriate member of our internal talent acquisition team. In the event a third‑party recruiter submits a resume or refers a candidate without a previously signed vendor agreement, SOLV Energy explicitly reserves the right to pursue and hire the candidate(s) without financial liability to such third‑party recruiter.

Job Number

J13912

About SOLV Energy

We design, build and maintain utility scale solar, battery storage and high voltage substation facilities across the United States. Our teams support projects from early engineering through long term operations and maintenance, giving employees opportunities to contribute across the full energy lifecycle. Our mission centers on strengthening communities and advancing the energy workforce.

Values

We focus on delivering projects that support long term economic growth and create pathways for skilled careers across the country. Our core values are Safety, Quality, Innovation and Teamwork.