Engineer III or IV - Solar

Mortenson; Minneapolis (MN); On-site; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Mortenson is seeking an Engineer III or IV in Minneapolis to design electrical systems for solar projects and manage relationships with clients. The role involves leading teams, coordinating with EPC, and ensuring compliance with electrical standards across 90–500+ MWdc scales.

The position offers growth into more complex leadership responsibilities and requires hands-on design experience, strong communication, and travel up to 25%. Compensation is determined by experience and location.

Qualifications

• Design and lead electrical systems for utility-scale solar projects.
• Coordinate with civil/structural and EPC teams to align electrical design.
• Demonstrate knowledge of NEC, NESC and IEEE standards.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership for solar electrical design on large projects.
• Review submittals and RFIs to ensure compliance with design drawings.
• Collaborate with field teams to translate design changes into installation.
• Lead design reviews and mentor junior engineers.
• Coordinate with owners and vendors to advance design progress.
• Perform loss calculations and grounding studies as needed.

Skills

Solar design

Electrical engineering

Leadership

Communication

Travel up to 25%

Education

Electrical Engineering degree

EIT certification

PE license preferred

Tools

ASPEN

ETAP

PSSE

CDEGS

AutoCAD

MicroStation

Job description

SUMMARY

Mortenson is currently seeking a Engineer III or IV - Solar that will provide design services, as well as effective customer relationship management with new and existing customers for the Engineering Services team.

This position offers opportunities at both levels III and IV, allowing candidates to apply based on their experience and qualifications. Compensation for this role is determined based on factors such as experience and location.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Provide technical lead and support for electrical portions of work for solar collection systems for 90 - 500+ MWdc size projects
• Coordinate PV electrical design with internal Mortenson EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) teams
• Lead 2-3 PV electrical design projects with team
• Provide quality reviews of team's engineering designs
• Coordinate PV electrical design with other engineering teams such as civil, structural, and substation
• Decide the best layout of collection system; including consideration of constraints such as overhead/underground, follow roads/cross country, and junction box locations
• Review manufacturer's data to determine extent of scope for electrical portion of project; including wiring requirements and electrical characteristics (i.e. grounding requirements, power factor ranges, lightning protection requirements, generator outputs, etc.)
• Verify that construction is in agreement with electrical engineering design drawings
• Lead the electrical engineering design through use of submittals, transmittals, and requests for information
• Provide technical expertise to all parties concerned
• Assist with technical questions during the bidding process and provide electrical engineering resource throughout the project
• Communicate with owners, vendors, local utilities to advance the electrical design of the project.
• Perform loss calculations (100% output/annualized), preliminary short circuit and reactive power calculations for pursuit level designs
• Perform system grounding studies in CDEGS
• Determine installation details for the scopes of work, including conduit and grounding details.
• Specify equipment ratings to aid in procurement
• Develop one-line diagrams of collection a system and substations, as well as standard details of electrical construction that are typical to Mortenson projects
• Work with the field teams to understand design changes to improve field work.
• Participate in lessons learned meetings to learn from past projects.
• Handle engineering work and logistics efficiently, providing suggestions for improvement
• Effectively work and build relationships with those of diverse backgrounds and organizational levels
• Lead team members by example, offer effective coaching and feedback, and effectively manage performance
• Deep understanding of solar collection system design
• Ampacity, grounding, short circuit, losses, reactive power understanding and capabilities
• Be able to lead technical discussions on their scope of work
• Working knowledge of NEC code, NESC and IEEE codes/standards

QUALIFICATIONS

• PE license preferred, EIT required
• Lead design and completed multiple utility scale solar projects including coordination with civil and structural engineering design teams
• Basic understanding of design and construction techniques and project management practices
• Possess basic understanding of engineering/construction generally accepted business practices
• Active listening skills and effective communication including an openness to diverse input and feedback
• Ability to travel up to 25%
• Understanding of discipline specific technical designs, QA/QC procedures, and engineering policies
• Developing project management and analytical problem solving skills
• Developing knowledge in system modeling, relay coordination studies, and development of associated protective relay settings for systems ranging from 34.5 kV to 500 kV
• Engineer III Qualifications:
  • Knowledge of engineering principles, business standards, practices, procedures, and product / program requirements
  • Working knowledge of or are familiar with software packages: ASPEN, ETAP, PSSE, CDEGS, AutoCAD, Microstation, Primtech, etc.
  • Engineering-in-Training (EIT) certification or achievement of EIT within 6 months of entering position with the expectation of achieving a PE license in the future
• Engineer IV Qualifications:
  • Advanced knowledge of engineering principles, business standards, practices, procedures, and product / program requirements
  • Developing team leadership and influencing skills
  • Extensive knowledge of or are familiar with software packages: ASPEN, ETAP, PSSE, CDEGS, AutoCAD, Microstation, Primtech, etc.
  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or related Engineering program
  • Professional Engineering (PE) license is expected or can be acquired within 6 months
  • Experience in the T&D industry

ESSENTIAL PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

This position requires the following with or without an accommodation; sitting, seeing, hearing, and utilization of a computer and office equipment